Norbert Untersteiner (February 24, 1926 – March 14, 2012)^[1] was one of the pioneers of modern polar science research, a professor of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Washington, and an AAAS Fellow.^[1]

Born in Merano, Italy, he led the Arctic Ice Dynamics Joint Experiment (AIDJEX) in the early 1970s. In 1979, he formed the Arctic Buoy Program as a contribution to the Global Atmospheric Research Program. He then formed the Polar Science Center (PSC) at the University of Washington and directed it from 1981 until 1988.^[1]

Untersteiner died of prostate cancer in March 2012, in Seattle, Washington.^[1]