Harold F. Weaver, a pioneering UC Berkeley astronomer whose discovery of radio emissions from molecules in outer space marked the new science of radio astronomy, has died at his East Bay home in Kensington. He was 99.
Nearly 60 years ago, Professor Weaver created the universitys first radio astronomy observatory at Hat Creek, a remote valley in Plumas County 290 miles from the Berkeley campus. The surrounding mountains shielded the observatory from interference by aircraft signals and the radio noises of civilization.
Its big receiver, a dish-shaped antenna, 85 feet in diameter, would lead to major discoveries and become the mainstay of the UC Radio Astronomy Laboratory, which Professor Weaver had founded on the Berkeley campus in 1958. He would direct it for the next 15 years.
At their Hat Creek observatory, Professor Weaver and his colleagues discovered the existence of astrophysical masers the equivalent in outer space of the lasers that had been created eight years earlier by UC Berkeleys Nobel laureate physicist Charles Townes. The masers were the first evidence that objects in the gas clouds of the galaxy were emitting coherent radiation.
Professor Weaver would later discover the first interstellar molecules known as hydroxyl radicals at a time when their mysterious radio emissions were often attributed to an unknown form of space matter named mysterium. Since his discovery, many other interstellar molecules have been detected in the atmosphere of comets.
His curiosity about the universe was wide: Even as a young astronomer on the Berkeley faculty in 1953 he was using galactic star clusters and Cepheid variable stars to calculate the outer limits of the Milky Way galaxy and to estimate that the universe was at least 3.6 billion years old close to todays estimates of 4 billion years.
Ten years later, he and the late Martin Schwartzchild of Princeton University launched a giant balloon from Palestine, Texas, in a project called Stratoscope. A 2-ton telescope carried by the balloon to an altitude of 15 miles peered at Mars and discovered the worlds first evidence of water vapor in the Martian atmosphere before it crashed in a mud-filled Louisiana cow pasture.
Harold Francis Weaver was born in San Jose in 1917, and by high school he was already building his own telescopes.
Still, he debated whether he would study classics or astronomy in college. The poet Robinson Jeffers had a telescope in his Carmel home, and encouraged the young man in his telescope-building interests.
As a UC Berkeley undergraduate in the astronomy department, he met his future wife, Cecile Trumpler, the daughter of astronomer Robert Julius Trumpler, and the two were married in 1939. It was Professor Trumpler who supervised his doctoral dissertation, and the two later collaborated on a book called Statistical Astronomy, which was published in 1953 and is still in use.
During World War II, he was conscripted to work on optics research for the National Defense Research Committee and later worked on isotope separation at what was then known as the Berkeley Radiation Lab.
After the war, he served as a staff scientist at Lick Observatory and joined the astronomy faculty at UC Berkeley in 1951. He retired as a professor in 1988 after publishing more than 70 professional papers and helping to guide development of the expanding Berkeley campus as a member and chairman of the Campus Facilities Committee in the 1950s and 1960s. He helped design the astronomy departments Campbell Hall, which was recently demolished and rebuilt on the same site.
Harold was truly a giant in our department of astronomy, UC astronomy Professor Alex Filippenko said after Professor Weavers April 26 death. I will always remember his warm smile, his generosity, and how he kept going with his research and other activities well into old age.
Professor Weaver had long served as treasurer both of the American Astronomical Society and Astronomical Society of the Pacific, and was a member of the group that founded the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland, where he served on the board of directors for many years.
He was also interested in contemporary writing, and for many years served as treasurer and a director of the Squaw Valley Community of Writers, a summer creative writing project located near Lake Tahoe.
The Weavers have donated their longtime Kensington home to UC to be used after their deaths to fund the Trumpler-Weaver Endowed Professorship in Astronomy at UC Berkeley.
Professor Weaver is survived by his wife and three children, Margot of Tucson, Paul of Kensington and Kirk of Houston.
Memorial gifts may be made to the Cal Alumni Leadership Award in care of the California Alumni Association, 1 Alumni House, Berkeley, CA 94720.
A memorial service is being arranged.
David Perlman is The San Francisco Chronicles science editor. Email: dperlman@sfchronicle.com
Go here to see the original:
Harold F. Weaver, pioneer of radio astronomy at UC Berkeley, dies - mySanAntonio.com
- Astronomy has a bullying and harassment issue: 'Results presented in this report are bleak' - Space.com - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- WASP-193b: The bizarro, fluffy exoplanet that comes as a surprise - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Next-Generation Radar Will Map Threatening Asteroids - Universe Today - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- The rush to return humans to the Moon and build lunar bases could threaten opportunities for astronomy - The Conversation - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Glimpses of a volcanic world: New telescope images of Jupiter's moon Io rival those from spacecraft - EurekAlert - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- The Sky This Week from May 31 to June 7: A Jupiter-Mercury conjunction - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Is Pluto a planet? The experts break it down. - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Astronomy Generates Mountains of Data. That's Perfect for AI - Universe Today - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- The Moon meets Saturn: This Week in Astronomy with Dave Eicher - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- What it means for planets to align | Astronomy.com - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- The future is bright for astronomy, and very expensive (op-ed) - Space.com - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Parade Of Planets And More Your Skywatching Guide To Astronomical Events This June - TRAVEL + LEISURE INDIA - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Free astronomy lecture in Lincoln City | Coast Life | newportnewstimes.com - Newport News Times - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Venus likely has active volcanoes, flowing streams of lava - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- New photos of the dark universe from Euclid are filled with wonder - Astronomy Magazine - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- James Webb Space Telescope spots the two most distant galaxies ever seen at cosmic dawn - University of Arizona News - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Featured speaker to discuss T Coronae Borealis, solar cycle at Quincy Astronomy Club meeting Thursday Muddy ... - Muddy River News - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Audience Mesmerized by 3D Shiur on Rambam's Astronomy - Anash.org - Good News - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Astronomers Fear Destructive Light Pollution From FCC's 'Single Network Future' - BroadbandBreakfast.com - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Caltech's Shri Kulkarni Awarded Shaw Prize in Astronomy For His Ground-Breaking Discoveries - SciTechDaily - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Astronomers Spot Epic Flows of Lava Oozing Out of Venus - Futurism - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- The summer solstice: What is it and when does it occur? - Space.com - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- 6 Stars Will Soon Be Visible at the Same Time in Rare 'Parade of Planets' - Yahoo News Canada - May 31st, 2024 [May 31st, 2024]
- Astronomy clubs want to help you enjoy the eclipse safely - NPR - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- You Can See a Rare, Bright Comet This Month. Will It Be Visible During the Solar Eclipse? - Smithsonian Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Solar Eclipse Path Map Shows States Where Sun Will Be Blocked Out - Newsweek - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Deep-space astronomy sensor peers into the heart of an atom - Space.com - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Physics and Astronomy Colloquium - Professor Paul Cassak; Department of Physics and Astronomy, West Virginia ... - The University of Iowa - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- United Nations prioritizes discussion of Dark and Quiet Skies - Astrobites - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The burning acid behind ant stings was spotted around two stars - WAPT Jackson - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The oddities known as Centaurs may sprout their tales after jumping to new orbits - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Pair of astronomy brothers to host eclipse viewing event - KAIT - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- How to watch the solar eclipse online - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- How does a black hole get to the center of a galaxy, and does the galaxy revolve around it? - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The eclipse gives astronomy clubs an opportunity to shine - Voice Of Alexandria - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- AI 'for all': How access to new models is advancing academic research, from astronomy to education - Source - Microsoft - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- KU Department of Physics & Astronomy professor receives prestigious NSF award for black hole research - Salina Post - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Inspect impressive Mare Imbrium Astronomy Now - Astronomy Now Online - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The Sky This Week from March 15 to 22: A conjunction of Venus and Saturn - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Pons-Brooks and M31 - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The slightly weird mathematical coincidence behind an eclipse - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- APOD: 2024 March 17 NGC 7714: Starburst after Galaxy Collision - Astronomy Picture of the Day - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- How to Safely View the Eclipse National Radio Astronomy Observatory - National Radio Astronomy Observatory - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- NOIRLab releases jaw-dropping images, video of remnants from massive star explosion | Astronomy.com - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- JWST spots oceans' worth of water evaporating from a distant disk - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Radiation is vaporizing a young star's disk in the Orion Nebula - Astronomy Magazine - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- APOD: 2024 March 12 A Galaxy Shaped Rocket Exhaust Spiral - Astronomy Picture of the Day - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Best laptops for astronomers and astrophotographers in 2024 - Space.com - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- Why astronomers are worried about 2 major telescopes right now - Space.com - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- The People Behind Webb | Webb - WebbTelescope.org - March 16th, 2024 [March 16th, 2024]
- X-ray image of universe reveals almost 1 million high-energy objects: 'These are mind-blowing numbers' - Space.com - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Galaxy named 'Nube' is almost invisible, baffling astronomers Earth.com - Earth.com - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Giant Star Seen 150 Days Before it Exploded as a Supernova - Universe Today - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- UH astronomer named to prominent national astronomical society | University of Hawaii System News - University of Hawaii - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- The Art of SeeingStates of Astronomy - Announcements - E-Flux - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Pluto isn't really a planet, but it might be Arizona's official state planet - Arizona Mirror - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Did You Know? Stars Near and Far Reveal Their Secrets to CSUN Scientists - California State University, Northridge - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Top 10 space stories of 2023 - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- How we found the Milky Way's bar: This Week in Astronomy with Dave Eicher - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- The best telescope to use with a smartphone - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- JWST releases 19 awe-inspiring images of spiral galaxies - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Learning Shines Brightly at SuperKnova National Radio Astronomy Observatory - National Radio Astronomy Observatory - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- The Crafoord Prize 2024 goes to three ERC grantees for their pioneering contributions to astronomy and mathematics ... - European Research Council - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- The Moon's south pole is likely not the safest place for manned missions - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- The moon could be perfect for cutting-edge telescopes but not if we don't protect it - Space.com - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- February Astronomy: Spot the Milky Way and the Zodiacal Light While the Skies Are Darkest - Coachella Valley Independent - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- You can stream an asteroid whizzing past Earth this weekend - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Chinese Astronomy at the Royal Observatory | Royal Observatory | Things to do in London - Time Out London - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Astronomers in Chile to scour universe with car-sized mega camera - - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Dark Matter Might Help Explain How Supermassive Black Holes Can Merge - Universe Today - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- How far away is the sun? They went on a perilous journey to find out. - National Geographic - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- Scientists spotted an asteroid hours before it burned up over Germany - Astronomy Magazine - February 1st, 2024 [February 1st, 2024]
- XRISM Unveils the Invisible: A New Era in X-Ray Astronomy - SciTechDaily - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- New Astronomy Finding Uncovers the Mystery of Star Formation at the Edge of Galaxies - SBU News - Stony Brook News - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- The Future Of Astronomy Lies In Artificial Intelligence - Forbes - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- The 'Super Bowl of Astronomy' begins next week in New Orleans - Space.com - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- Scientific American proposes policing the language of astronomy to make it beautiful and elegant, as well as ... - Why Evolution Is True - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- 'Blob-like' home of farthest-known fast radio burst is collection of seven galaxies - Northwestern Now - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- Astronomers revealed mysterious star formation by hearts of molecular clouds - Tech Explorist - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]
- Spectroscopic sizing of interstellar icy grains with JWST - Nature.com - January 10th, 2024 [January 10th, 2024]