Matthias Hort was born in 1961. He received the M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in geophysics from the University of Münster, Münster, Germany, in 1987 and 1991, respectively. After his Ph.D., he was with the Department of Earth and Planetary Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, for more than two years. There, he worked on the interaction of crystallization and convection in magma chambers. He returned to Germany in 1994 to work with the GEOMAR Research Center, Kiel, Germany, in the Volcanology Department as an Assistant Professor. He kept working on physical processes in volcanic systems. Since May 2003, he has been a Full Professor for marine geophysics and geophysical volcanology with the Institute of Geophysics, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany. His current research focus is on the generation, rise, eruption, and dispersion of volcanic material, including melting processes in the mantel, eruption dynamics, and atmospheric processes, as well as instrument development for geophysical volcanology. Dr. Hort was the recipient of the Habilitation and Venia Legendi in Geophysics from the University of Kiel, Kiel, in 1999.