Eugene Parker is a pioneering astrophysicist who discovered the solar wind and revolutionized the way we understand the sun and interplanetary space. Now, the 91-year-old is the first living person to have a spacecraft named after him.
Eugene Parker is a pioneering astrophysicist who discovered the solar wind and revolutionized the way we understand the sun and interplanetary space. Now, the 91-year-old is the first living person to have a spacecraft named after him.
University of Chicago
Parker discovered physics in high school and received his undergraduate degree at Michigan State University. He went to the California Institute of Technology for his Ph.D. and received it in 1951. "At Caltech, I met people so smart, they take your breath away. After a few years passed, I found I wasn't doing too bad myself."
Parker discovered physics in high school and received his undergraduate degree at Michigan State University. He went to the California Institute of Technology for his Ph.D. and received it in 1951. "At Caltech, I met people so smart, they take your breath away. After a few years passed, I found I wasn't doing too bad myself."
University of Chicago
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was the editor of the Astrophysical Journal when Parker submitted his groundbreaking paper on the theory of the solar wind in 1958. Although two eminent referees rejected the paper because it clashed with old ideas, Chandrasekhar overruled them and published it. Chandrasekhar was a Nobel laureate, and the Chandra X-Ray Observatory is named after him.
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was the editor of the Astrophysical Journal when Parker submitted his groundbreaking paper on the theory of the solar wind in 1958. Although two eminent referees rejected the paper because it clashed with old ideas, Chandrasekhar overruled them and published it. Chandrasekhar was a Nobel laureate, and the Chandra X-Ray Observatory is named after him.
University of Chicago
Parker has been on the faculty at the University of Chicago since 1955. "If I have good students, I enjoy teaching, and here in Chicago, we have a pretty good bunch of students. It was a pleasure to teach basic physics, which is what I'm most interested in."
Parker has been on the faculty at the University of Chicago since 1955. "If I have good students, I enjoy teaching, and here in Chicago, we have a pretty good bunch of students. It was a pleasure to teach basic physics, which is what I'm most interested in."
University of Chicago
Parker shows an image of the flow of solar wind in 1977.
Parker shows an image of the flow of solar wind in 1977.
University of Chicago
Parker received the National Medal of Science in 1991.
Parker received the National Medal of Science in 1991.
University of Chicago
Parker is now the S. Chandrasekhar Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago.
Parker is now the S. Chandrasekhar Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus at the University of Chicago.
University of Chicago
A plaque dedicating NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission was installed on the spacecraft. It includes his message to the sun.
A plaque dedicating NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission was installed on the spacecraft. It includes his message to the sun.
NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman
The Parker Solar Probe will embark on a seven-year mission to study the sun and its corona, hopefully providing answers about some of the sun's remaining mysteries.
The Parker Solar Probe will embark on a seven-year mission to study the sun and its corona, hopefully providing answers about some of the sun's remaining mysteries.
NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman