Alexander DALGARNO

Background

Dalgarno, Alexander was born on January 5, 1928 in London. Son of William and Margaret (Murray) Dalgarno.

Education

Bachelor of Science, University London, 1947. Doctor of Philosophy, University London, 1951. Master of Arts (honorary), Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1967.

Doctor of Science (honorary), Queen's University Belfast, 1980. Doctor of Science (honorary), York University of Canberra, 2000.

Career

He was an academic at the Queen"s University, Belfast where he worked with Sir David Bates. He moved to Harvard in 1967. He made contributions in theoretical chemistry, scattering theory, atmospheric physics & chemistry and astrophysics.

Known as the "father of molecular astrophysics", Dalgarno was also a physicist at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and was formerly the editor of the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

From 1951 through 1967, he rose from assistant lecturer to professor at Queen"s University, Belfast, and then joined the Harvard department of astronomy in 1967. He held the positions of acting director of Harvard College Observatory, chairman of the department of astronomy, associate director of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and director of the Institute for Theoretical Atomic and Molecular Physics.

Dalgarno"s research covered three main areas: theoretical atomic and molecular physics, astrophysics and aeronomy (the study of the upper atmosphere). He was the author of more than 600 publications.

Sir David Bates wrote in 1988 that "There is no greater figure than Alex in the history of atomic physics and its applications." In the 1950s, he laid the foundations for long-range atomic interaction studies which are of critical importance for today"s interest in Bose–Einstein condensates.

Achievements

• Alexander Dalgarno has been listed as a noteworthy Astronomy educator by Marquis Who's Who.

Membership

Fellow: International Academy Quantum Molecular Science (annual prize 1967), International Academy Astronautics, Royal Astronomical Society (Gold medal 1986), American Geophysical Union (Fleming medal 1995), American Physical Society (Davisson-Germer award 1980), Royal Society (Hughes medal 2002), Royal Irish Academy (honorary), Institute Physical (United Kingdom), Optical Society of America (Meggers award 1986), American Academy Arts and Sciences. Member: National Academy of Sciences, International Society Theoretical Chemical Physics (honorary board member).

Connections

Married Barbara W.F. Kane, October 31, 1957 (divorced). Children: Penelope, Rebecca, Piers, Fergus. Married Emily K. Izsak, June 23, 1972 (divorced).

Father:

William Dalgarno

Mother:

Margaret (Murray) Dalgarno

Spouse:

Emily K. Izsak

Spouse:

Barbara W.F. Kane

child:

Rebecca Dalgarno

child:

Piers Dalgarno

child:

Penelope Dalgarno

child:

Fergus Dalgarno