Reporting Deaths of AAS Members

This may seem a rather macabre topic, but the AAS attempts to keep track of the deaths of its members and others in the astronomical community, and we need everyone to help. Each year at the Members’ Meeting in June, the Secretary reports on all members who have died in the previous year, and we want the list to be complete. We do this for historical reasons and to recognize and honor our colleagues.

We have prepared a slideshow of deceased colleagues for the last few years. These are posted on the AAS YouTube channel. The In Memoriam slideshow from last year is representative of these presentations.

While the AAS staff, Secretary, and the AAS Historical Astronomy Division (HAD) try to keep up with members passing, we sometimes don’t hear the news until long after. — this is where you can help! If you know of an astronomer who has died in the past year, please report it to the AAS using this form.

There is one more way you can help in this effort. HAD is charged with keeping a list of all deceased AAS members and collecting obituaries. The list and the obituaries collected so far are posted on the Bulletin of the AAS. There is also a list of obituaries that are still needed. If you would be willing to contribute an obituary for a friend, colleague, or former professor, please get in touch with Crystal Tinch.

Thanks for your help!