In Memoriam

[Waspie_Dwarf]

James Cronin, Who Explained Why Matter Survived the Big Bang, Dies at 84

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James W. Cronin, a physicist who shared a Nobel Prize for repudiating a fundamental principle of physics and explaining why the universe survived the Big Bang with anything in it, died on Thursday in St. Paul. He was 84.

His death was confirmed by the University of Chicago, where he was a professor emeritus. No cause was given.

  Read more: The New York Times

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Jack Garman, NASA engineer who 'saved' Apollo 11 from alarms, dies at 72

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Sept. 20, 2016 — John "Jack" Garman, a NASA engineer whose knowledge of the computer aboard Apollo 11 saved the historic first lunar landing from a last-minute abort, died on Tuesday (Sept. 20). He was 72.

Garman's death came after a several year battle with bone marrow cancer, according to an email by his wife that was forwarded to the Johnson Space Center retiree community and then shared with collectSPACE.

  Read more: collectSPACE

 

[SHaYap]

RiP Jack ... What would they do without you ...

~

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Remembering Ewen A. Whitaker, 1922–2016

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An amateur who devoted his live to chronicling the Moon, and became one of the world's most renowned lunar specialists, has died at age 94.

Ewen Adair Whitaker was one of the rare astronomers who made the transition from amateur to professional. Born in London on June 22, 1922, Whitaker became a member and then leader of the Lunar Section of the British Astronomical Association during the 1940s. In 1949 he was hired as an astronomer at Greenwich Observatory, and his skill at lunar photography came to the attention of Gerard Kuiper, the director of Yerkes Observatory. Kuiper recruited Whitaker to help create a series of lunar atlases for scientific study and mission planning for what became the Apollo program.

  Read more: Sky & Telescope

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Piers Sellers: UK-born astronaut dies aged 61

 

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British-born astronaut Piers Sellers has died of pancreatic cancer, aged 61, Nasa has said.

Born in Crowborough, East Sussex, Dr Sellers began working for the US space agency as a scientist in 1982 before joining its astronaut corps in 1996.

The climate expert made three Space Shuttle flights to the International Space Station, between 2002 and 2010.

Nasa said Dr Sellers, who was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer in 2015, died in Houston on Friday.

  Read more: BBC News

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Vera Rubin, pioneering astronomer, dies at 88

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Astronomer Vera Rubin, whose pioneering work on galaxy rotation rates led to the theory of dark matter, has died at the age of 88, her son says.

Allan Rubin said she died on Sunday of natural causes, AP reported. She was living in Princeton, New Jersey.

Her studies earned her numerous honours, including being the second female astronomer to be elected to the US National Academy of Sciences.

But many questioned why she was never awarded a Nobel Prize.

  Read more: BBC News

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Raymond Heacock, JPL engineer who worked on Voyager mission, dies at 88

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Raymond Leroy Heacock, an engineer who guided NASA’s Voyager mission through encounters with both Jupiter and Saturn, has died at his home in La Crescenta at the age of 88.

Heacock, who died Tuesday, spent his entire career at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada Flintridge, where he worked from 1953 until his retirement in 1990. 

  Read more: Los Angeles Times

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Cosmonaut Igor Volk dead at 79

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Former Soviet cosmonaut Igor Petrovich Volk passed away while on vacation in Bulgaria on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017 – he was 79. Volk was a test pilot for the Mikoyan Aircraft Design Bureau. His accomplishments covered an array of vehicles and environments – including a mission to orbit.

Born on April 12, 1937, Volk first took to the skies in 1954, becoming an accomplished pilot and test pilot.

  Read more: Spaceflight Insider

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Remembering Gene Cernan

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Euguene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, died Monday, Jan. 16, surrounded by his family.

Photo gallery of Eugene Cernan

Cernan, a Captain in the U.S. Navy, left his mark on the history of exploration by flying three times in space, twice to the moon. He also holds the distinction of being the second American to walk in space and the last human to leave his footprints on the lunar surface.

  Read more: NASA

 

[Derek Willis]

RIP Gene Cernan. Another of the legends has passed. He hoped to live to see others walk on the Moon. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be.

[Lilly]

The first and now the last man to walk on the moon...both are gone now. How sad to see the golden era of space travel passing away.

[+and-then]

3 hours ago, Lilly said:

The first and now the last man to walk on the moon...both are gone now. How sad to see the golden era of space travel passing away.

Sadly, it appears we will only be spectators for the next manned missions but I still wish the Chinese well with their program.  The only place our money seems to be used today is in places like the DARPA.  As China moves further into the science and engineering of space travel, the DARPA may be the only thing that keeps us in parity, scientifically.

[Merc14]

Charles Bolden's tribute tribute to Gene Cernan  http://www.space.com/35359-gene-cernan-s-drive-to-inspire-recalled-by-nasa-chief-video.html

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Goddard Center Director Remarks on Passing of Neil Gehrels

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NASA scientist Neil Gehrels passed away on Feb. 6, 2017. The following is a statement from Goddard Center Director Chris Scolese on Dr. Gehrels' passing.

"Our center has lost a dear friend and astronomy pioneer, and his spirit will always live on in our work. Those of us who were fortunate to work with Neil know of his unwavering enthusiasm for science and unselfish generosity in mentoring others.

  Read More: NASA

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Cosmonaut Georgy Grechko, launched to Salyut space stations, dies at 85

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April 8, 2017 — Soviet-era cosmonaut Georgy Grechko, who in 1977 made the first spacewalk wearing a spacesuit design still in use on the International Space Station today, died on Saturday (April 8). He was 85.

  Read more: collectSPACE

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Pioneering radio astronomer Harold Weaver dies at age 99

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Harold Francis Weaver, a pioneer of radio astronomy who discovered the first microwave laser, or maser, in space, passed away peacefully in his Kensington, California, home on April 26 at the age of 99.

Weaver was a professor emeritus of astronomy, the founder of UC Berkeley’s Radio Astronomy Laboratory and its director from 1958 until 1972 and a former chairman of the Department of Astronomy.

  Read more: University of California, Berkeley

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Viktor Gorbatko, one of the first Soviet-era cosmonauts, dies at 82

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May 17, 2017 – Viktor Gorbatko, one of the first Soviet-era cosmonauts and a veteran of three flights into space, died on Wednesday (May 17). He was 82.

"Roscosmos expresses deep condolences to the relatives and friends of Viktor Vasilyevich," the space agency wrote in a statement posted to its website.

  Read more: collectSPACE

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Astronomer Jerry Nelson, pioneering designer of large telescopes, dies at age 73

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Jerry Nelson, a pioneering astronomer known for his innovative designs for advanced telescopes, died June 10 at his home in Santa Cruz. He was 73.

A professor emeritus of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, Nelson was project scientist for the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) and had served as project scientist for the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii from 1985 through 2012.

  Read more: University of California, Santa Cruz

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Astronaut Paul Weitz, helped save Skylab, commanded Challenger, dies at 85

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Paul Weitz, a former NASA astronaut who lived on board Skylab before commanding the maiden mission of space shuttle Challenger, died on Monday (Oct. 23). He was 85.

Weitz died peacefully at his home in Flagstaff, Arizona, as reported by his daughter, by way of a family friend. He had been diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndromes, or MDS, a form of cancer.

  Read more: collectSPACE

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

Remembering Dick Gordon

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Former NASA astronaut Richard Gordon, command module pilot on Apollo 12, the second lunar landing mission, passed away on Nov. 6, 2017.

Acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot said in a statement on Gordon's passing: “NASA and the nation have lost one of our early space pioneers. We send our condolences to the family and loved ones of Gemini and Apollo astronaut Richard Gordon, a hero from NASA’s third class of astronauts. 

  Read more: NASA

 

[Waspie_Dwarf]

NASA Remembers Astronaut Bruce McCandless II

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Former NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless II, mission specialist on the STS-41B and STS-31 missions, passed away on Dec. 21, 2017, at the age of 80.

McCandless is perhaps best remembered as the subject of a famous NASA photograph (below right), flying alongside the space shuttle in the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) -- the first astronaut to fly untethered from his spacecraft. His time as an astronaut encompassed much more than that mission, including serving as the Mission Control communicator for Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's moonwalk on the Apollo 11 mission.

  Read more: NASA

 

[Grandpa Greenman]

Onward and upward, Bruce.

[Piney]

That was some risky business there. Anything could have gone wrong. He had some courage.

[khol]

54 minutes ago, Piney said:

That was some risky business there. Anything could have gone wrong. He had some courage.

I just watched this as well.. ..holy crap...a situation where you gotta have complete confidance in your equipment!  unreal actually  watching that  

   great video!

Edited December 23, 2017 by khol
I meant to add RIP Bruce..A true pioneer and leader

[Waspie_Dwarf]

NASA Mourns the Passing of Astronaut John Young

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Astronaut John Young, who walked on the Moon during Apollo 16 and commanded the first space shuttle mission, died Friday, Jan. 5, 2018, at the age of 87 from complications of pneumonia. Young began his impressive career at NASA in 1962, when he was selected from among hundreds of young pilots to join NASA's second astronaut class, known as the "New Nine."

“Today, NASA and the world have lost a pioneer," acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot said in a statement. "Astronaut John Young's storied career spanned three generations of spaceflight; we will stand on his shoulders as we look toward the next human frontier."

  Read more: NASA