FALMOUTH – Edward “Ned” Shenton passed away on June 24, 2022. He grew up in rural Pennsylvania, where he attended Haverford Prep School. He later graduated from Colby College and received his master’s degree in Oceanographic Geology from Texas A & M.

His career as an oceanographer took him from coast to coast and beyond, surveying the ocean depths in a small diving saucer alongside Jacques Cousteau and his crew; completing various diving missions for Scripps Institute; and managing a worldwide network of satellites for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. In his later years, he was part of the National Science Foundation’s Greenland Ice Sheet, an ice core drilling project researching the area’s climate over the past 125,000 years. It was here that he earned the nickname “Grateful Ned,” which later became the title of his life story.

A long-time member of the Explorer’s Club and active with Colby Alumni, Ned was an avid sailor with an insatiable thirst for reading. Inspired at a young age by his parents who were both writers and artists, his extensive book collection in the library of his Peaks Island cottage was familiar to many islanders during the 40-odd years he lived there. In addition to his autobiography, he authored two books: “Exploring the Ocean Depths,” and “Diving for Science.”

Ned’s life was an endless adventure from the depths of the sea to the vast world beyond.

He made the most of his life and will be long remembered by those who adored and admired him: his daughter, Amie; the members of his extended family, including stepchildren John, David, Robert and Julie; his island neighbors; and friends far and wide.