Professor Griffiths has a high international reputation for his laboratory and theoretical research in fluid dynamics, with far-reaching applications in the diverse fields of ocean modelling, volcanology and convection in the Earth's interior. His work has illuminated the behaviour of ocean eddies, as they interact with each other and with boundaries, coastal and bottom currents, and convection and mixing in the ocean. His innovative models of solidifying lava flows and domes have established a new understanding of their behaviour, which has rapidly become influential among volcanologists. His modelling of the ascent of hot plumes in the Earth's mantle has led to a compelling dynamical theory that underpins the current widely accepted explanation of the origin of volcanic hot-spots.