Gao Shan/Gāo Shān was born on June 30, 1962, and died on May 3, 2016.

He was a Chinese geochemist and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Gao was a professor of Geochemistry at China University of Geosciences (Wuhan campus).

He received his bachelor’s degree in geology from Northwest University (China) in 1982.

He was a graduate at the China University of Geosciences (Wuhan campus) in 1985 when he obtained a master degree.

Shan gained his PhD from China University of Geosciences in 1989.

After he finish, school, he was an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation post-doctoral scientist at the Geochemisches institute, University of Göttingen, before he returned to China to take up a faculty position at the China University of Geosciences.

Shan’s work included chemical composition of the continental crust, chemical exchange between the crust and the mantle, and laser ablation ICP-MS and its applications to in-situ elemental and isotopic analysis of minerals.

He published authoritative articles on the chemical composition of the continental crust and contributed to unravelling the history of decolonization in the North China Craton.

He was also elected as a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in December 2011.

Shan was also a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2009), Geochemical Society (2014) and European Association of Geochemistry (2014).

Gao Shan passed away at 53 yrs old.