SOUTHAMPTON has awarded a prestigious honour to a world-renowned geochemist.

The University of Southampton has given Dr Benjamin Van Mooy a Diamond Jubilee International Visiting Fellowship.

The honour was established last year to mark the university’s 60th anniversary and boost its profile globally by consolidating links with those abroad.

During his three-year fellowships, Dr Van Mooy, an associate scientist at the world-renowned Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, will use his research to inform students and design and conduct experiments at sea.