Sigmund R. Petersen

Petersen was born in Haugesund, Norway, on 22 November 1936. He and his family lived under the German occupation of Norway during World War II from 1940 to 1945. He worked as a paperboy for the Everett newspaper, The Daily Herald, and took pride in becoming the first member of his family to return to Norway to visit relatives there, using the money he saved from his newspaper delivery job. ==Career==

In 1961, Petersen joined the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, accepting a commission as an ensign in the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps. In 1971, he received a master's degree in marine affairs from the University of Rhode Island. During his career, Petersen served aboard five different ships of the Coast and Geodetic Survey fleet and later the NOAA fleet, and during the 1970s and 1980s he served tours as commanding officer of the research ships NOAAS Miller Freeman (R 223) — the first NOAA Corps officer to command her While he was in command of Miller Freeman, he and his ship came to assistance of disabled fishing vessel in the Bering Sea during a storm, and a crew member took a dramatic photograph of Miller Freeman cresting a large wave as she approached the fishing vessel. and retired from NOAA. Petersen's career had included stints in the pre-NOAA Coast and Geodetic Survey and in NOAA's National Ocean Service, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, National Marine Fisheries Service, and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, with assignments in many locations in the continental United States, Hawaii, and England and a wide variety of duties that at various times included cartographic, geodetic, hydrographic, meteorological, oceanographic, and operational positions. During his career, he established a reputation as a self-effacing leader who was quick to defer credit for success to his subordinates. He was known for his passion for and vocal advocacy of NOAA science. ==Personal life==

Petersen married Rebecca Ann Albritton in 1963. They had three daughters and a son. ==Later life==

Throughout his retirement, Petersen maintained contact with his former colleagues at NOAA and accepted occasional brief recalls to active duty in the NOAA Corps to handle various administrative functions. His wife Rebecca died on 5 September 2023 after a 60-year marriage. He was residing with his daughters in Kent, Washington, when he died in Everett on 24 January 2024 after a brief stay in hospice care. ==Awards==

• Department of Commerce Silver Medal • NOAA Administrator's Award (1989) • NOAA Corps Commendation Medal (two awards) ==References==