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All Posts by Crystal M. Tinch

Charles Latif Hyder (1930 - 2004)

My friend and colleague, Charles Hyder, was a true physicist with a sound intuitive grasp of fundamentals in modern physics and the underlying mathematics. I admired his knowledge of the history of modern physics and quantum mechanics when we discussed contemporary problems in interpreting solar observations. He had the ability to present his ideas clearly and persuasively to both students and his colleagues. His insatiable curiosity about life in general led him to consider the effects of nuclear weapons development on the human race.

R. Glenn Hall (1921 - 2004)

R. Glenn Hall died on 25 June 2004 following a battle with prostate cancer. His contributions to the determination of the frequency corresponding to an energy level transition in the Cesium atom led to the definition of the length of the second and formed the basis for precise modern timekeeping.

Glenn was born on 23 June 1921 in Koloa, Hawaii, and together with a brother and three sisters, grew up in Albion, Michigan. His father was a professor of political science at Albion College.

Thomas Gold (1920 - 2004)

Thomas "Tommy" Gold died of heart disease at Cayuga Medical Center, Ithaca NY on 22 June 2004 at the age of 84. He will be remembered as one of the most interesting, dynamic and influential scientists of his generation. Tommy's paradigm-changing ideas in astronomy and planetary science, while original and bold, were also highly controversial. With his radical work on the origin of natural gas and petroleum, the controversy is likely to continue.

Richard Joseph Elston (1960 - 2004)

Richard Joseph Elston, known for his development of innovative astronomical instrumentation, died on 26 January 2004 in Gainesville, Florida, after a four-year battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma. A professor of astronomy at the University of Florida, Richard had an unusually broad range of interests and skills, and a willingness to share his passion for astronomy with others, which made him a highly valued member of the astronomical community.

Thomas Michael Donahue (1921 - 2004)

Thomas M. Donahue, one of the nation's leading space and planetary scientists and a pioneer of space exploration, died Saturday October 16, 2004, from complications following heart surgery. The Edward H. White II Distinguished University Professor of Planetary Science at the University of Michigan, Tom shaped space exploration through his scientific achievements and policy positions. His work started with the first use of sounding rockets following World War II and continued for almost 60 years.

Leverett Davis Jr. (1914 - 2003)

Professor Leverett Davis Jr., Professor of theoretical physics at the California Institute of Technology, died on June 15, 2003 after a long illness. He was 89 years old. He contributed many important ideas and concepts to theoretical astrophysics and was a pioneer in the in situ scientific exploration of space using observations from spacecraft.

Joseph Wyan Chamberlain (1928 - 2004)

Joseph W. Chamberlain died at home with his family on April 14 2004 after a long illness. He was born August 24, 1928 and raised in Boonville, Missouri, where his father was the doctor. There was no doubt that both Joe and his elder brother Gilbert would also become doctors, but Joe's first class in comparative anatomy at the University of Missouri convinced him that this was not his destiny and he immediately switched to physics and astronomy.

David Fulmer Bender (1913 - 2004)

David Fulmer Bender died in San Diego, California, on 13 September 2004, at the age of 91. His heart stopped suddenly while he was dancing. His pioneering work in establishing comprehensive, computer-accessible ephemerides of asteroids and comets found many applications, including the first-ever visit to an asteroid, Gaspra, by an interplanetary spacecraft.

Richard L. Walker Jr. (1938 - 2005)

Dick Walker, 67, died 30 March 2005 in Flagstaff, AZ, following a long illness. He was born on 9 March 1938 in Hampton, Iowa and grew up in Waterloo, Iowa.

As a child, Dick was fascinated with astronomy and built his own telescope. He saved his pennies and bought and read every book on the subject he could find. He also raised pigeons, naming four of them Hertzsprung, Hoyle, Gamow, and Kron.

Damon Paul Simonelli (1959 - 2004)

Damon Paul Simonelli died unexpectedly on 1 December 2004 after he collapsed of heart failure at his home near Pasadena, California. Damon led pioneering studies in the scientific exploration of the satellites of the Solar System with spacecraft. He was a longtime member of the AAS's Division for Planetary Sciences community. Only two weeks before his death he attended the 2004 DPS meeting in Louisville where he presented a paper on the surface roughness of Phoebe based on Cassini observations.

Gibson Reaves (1923 - 2005)

Gibson Reaves died on 8 April 2005 in Torrance, California, from advanced metastatic prostate cancer. He contributed to the early study of dwarf galaxies in the Virgo cluster, but his greatest contribution to astronomy lives in the students whom he taught at the Department of Astronomy at the University of Southern California.

Albert G. Petschek (1928 - 2004)

Albert G. Petschek died suddenly 8 July 2004. He enjoyed good health and was very active professionally and personally until his death. He was highly respected, particularly in theoretical physics, for his deep, broad-ranging analytical powers, which resulted in contributions to nuclear physics, astrophysics, atmospheric physics, quantum mechanics, and quantum computing.

Philip Morrison (1915 - 2005)

Philip Morrison, who died 22 April 2005 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was born in Somerville, New Jersey on 7 November 1915 to Moses and Tilly (née Rosenbloom) Morrison. Early childhood polio confined him for extended periods, during which he apparently developed his remarkable skill at speed reading. Speed writing (leading to a bibliography of more than 600 items) came later, and his memory must always have been exceedingly retentive.

John Daniel Kraus (1910 - 2004)

John Daniel Kraus, 94, of Delaware, Ohio, director of the Ohio State University "Big Ear" Radio Observatory, physicist, inventor, and environmentalist died 18 July 2004 at his home in Delaware, Ohio. He was born on 28 June 1910 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He received a Bachelor of Science in 1930, a Master of Science in 1931, and a PhD in physics in 1933 (at 23 years of age), all from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

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