Rate My Professor Bob Dagg

Bob Dagg holds a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Geology from the University of Otago, completing his MSc in 2010 with research on the Greensand at the Marshall paraconformity. Currently, he serves as a Scientific Officer and Sediment Core Specialist for the Department of Marine Science, with his office in the Department of Geology on Leith Street, Room 1n21. As the key staff member for the Otago Analytical Core Repository within the Department of Geology, he manages specialized equipment including iTrax core scanners, Geotek multi-sensor core loggers, coring equipment, and geophysical instruments. These facilities provide essential support for paleoenvironmental analyses, sedimentology, and geophysical research across the Division of Sciences, including departments of Geology, Marine Science, Chemistry, and Geography.

Dagg actively participates in field expeditions aboard University of Otago research vessels such as the R/V Polaris II, managing equipment deployment, sample acquisition, and processing. He curates core samples from Otago researchers, trains graduate students and visiting scientists in analytical techniques, conducts data quality control, hosts international collaborators, and oversees a dedicated biosecurity facility for restricted materials. His expertise enables groundbreaking studies in paleomagnetism, paleoceanography, ice sheet dynamics, and climate reconstruction, with geotechnical laboratories under his purview being unique in New Zealand. In 2016, he was awarded the Pride of Workmanship Award, nominated by Professor Gary Wilson and Dr. Chris Moy, who highlighted his reliability in remote field settings, comprehensive teaching, and commitment to high-quality research outcomes. Dagg is a co-author on key publications, including 'A Holocene Paleosecular Variation Record From the Northwestern Ross Sea, Antarctica' (Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 2025), 'Holocene paleoceanographic variability in Robertson Bay, Ross Sea, Antarctica' (Quaternary Science Reviews, 2024), and contributions to a high-resolution climate record spanning the past 17,000 years (Scientific Drilling, 2018). His technical support has been acknowledged in numerous Antarctic and sedimentary studies.