Donald Gurnett
Donald Gurnett | |
---|---|
Born | |
Died | 13 January 2022 | (aged 81)
Known for | Plasma wave instrument |
Spouse | Marie Gurnett |
Children |
|
Scientific career | |
Fields | Physics |
Donald Alfred Gurnett (April 11, 1940 – January 13, 2022) was an American physicist and professor at the University of Iowa who specialized in plasma physics.[1][2]
Early life and education
Gurnett grew up in Fairfax, Iowa. In his spare time he built and flew model airplanes with a club at the airport in Cedar Rapids. There he met the German expatriate scientist Alexander Lippisch.[1]
Gurnett received his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Iowa in 1962, and then his master's degree in physics in 1963 and his doctorate in 1965.[1]
Career
Gurnett's research into space plasmas (and his involvement in the development of electronics and measuring devices for space missions) began while he was a student and eventually led to early studies of
His involvement with space plasmas continued through his involvement in 41 NASA missions, including Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 to the outer planets,[5][6][7] the Galileo mission to Jupiter, and the Cassini mission to Saturn.[8] He was particularly concerned with the formation of the plasma waves observable in the radio spectrum in the plasmas of the radiation belts of planets with magnetic fields and wave-particle interactions in the plasmas, which are often easier to study in space than in the laboratory.[1]
In late August 2012, the radio and
Awards and honors
In 1998, Gurnett became a member of the National Academy of Sciences.[13] In 2004, he became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[14]
In 2014 he gave the Van Vleck Lecture and in 2006 the EGU Hannes Alfvén Medal. In addition, he received the
Personal life
He was married to his wife Marie. Together they had two daughters, Suzanne and Christina.[2]
Gurnett died on January 13, 2022, at the age of 81.[2]
External links
References
- ^ a b c d e "Legendary Iowa space physicist Donald Gurnett dies". Iowa Now. January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Donald Alfred Gurnett Obituary". Iowa City Press-Citizen. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
- .
- ^ "Don Gurnett images". space.physics.uiowa.edu. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
- PMID 17783836.
- ISSN 0019-1035.
- S2CID 206550402.
- S2CID 55975784.
- Bibcode:2014AGUFMSH13E..04G.
- S2CID 209934074.
- PMID 35005245.
- ^ "Legendary Iowa space physicist Donald Gurnett dies". Iowa Now. January 13, 2022.
- ^ "Donald Gurnett, Ph.D. | Physics and Astronomy - The University of Iowa". physics.uiowa.edu. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
- ^ "Donald A. Gurnett". American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
- ^ "Donald A. Gurnett". European Geosciences Union (EGU). Retrieved January 29, 2022.