Bartholomeus Jan "Bart" Bok (April 28, 1906 – August 5, 1983) was a Dutch-American
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...
, teacher, and lecturer. He is best known for his work on the structure and evolution of the
Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye ...
galaxy, and for the discovery of
Bok globules, which are small, densely dark clouds of interstellar gas and dust that can be seen silhouetted against brighter backgrounds. Bok suggested that these globules may be in the process of contracting, before forming into stars.
Bok married fellow astronomer
Priscilla Fairfield in 1929, and for the remainder of their lives, the two collaborated so closely on their astronomical work that the Royal Astronomical Society said "from that point on it is difficult and pointless to separate his achievements from hers".
The Boks displayed such great mutual enthusiasm for explaining astronomy to the public that ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' described them in 1936 as "salesmen of the Milky Way".
They worked together on research and co-authored academic papers, and their general interest book ''The Milky Way'' went through five editions and was "widely acclaimed as one of the most successful astronomical books ever published".
[
Bok's primary research interest was the structure of our galaxy.] When he was asked by the editors of ''Who's Who in America'' to submit a statement concerning "Thoughts on My Life", he wrote, "I have been a happy astronomer for the past sixty years, wandering through the highways and byways of our beautiful Milky Way."
Bart Bok was an exceedingly popular personality in the field of astronomy, noted for his affability and humor. When asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere.
...
1983 Bok was named for him and his wife Priscilla, he thanked the International Astronomical Union for giving him "a little plot of land that I can retire to and live on."
Early life and studies 1906–1929
Bok was born in the small Dutch town of Hoorn, north of Amsterdam, to Jan Bok, who was a sergeant-major in the Dutch army
The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...
, and Gesina Annetta (née van der Lee) Bok, but he spent a good deal of his childhood with his grandparents in the town of Haarlem
Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...
, where he attended primary school. He attended high school in The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
, excelling at mathematics and science, and he also told the story that this was where he met a Scoutmaster
A Scout leader or Scouter generally refers to the trained adult leader of a Scout unit. The terms used vary from country to country, over time, and with the type of unit.
Roles
There are many different roles a leader can fulfill depending on t ...
who introduced him to the night sky while on camping trips away from the city lights. After completing high school, he went on to study astronomy at Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
and Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
Universities.
In 1928, he attended the International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
(IAU) Third General Assembly in Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
in the Netherlands. Priscilla Fairfield was an associate professor in Astronomy, and the young Bart Bok was assigned to her reception committee. He was a graduate student ten years her junior, but he fell in love and proposed to her at the end of the conference. Priscilla did not accept his proposal at the time, and Bart corresponded with her for the next year before she finally agreed.
The following year, Bok broke off his thesis studies at Groningen
Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...
with Piet van Rhijn and moved across the Atlantic to Cambridge, Massachusetts, on the invitation of Harlow Shapley
Harlow Shapley (November 2, 1885 – October 20, 1972) was an American scientist, head of the Harvard College Observatory (1921–1952), and political activist during the latter New Deal and Fair Deal.
Shapley used Cepheid variable stars to estim ...
, Director of Harvard College Observatory
The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United St ...
, whom he had also met at the same IAU Assembly where he met Priscilla. On September 9, 1929, two days after moving to the US, the two were married. This caused some awkwardness with their mutual superior Shapley, who regarded Priscilla as something of a protégée and was protective of her. While Bok had the greatest admiration for Shapley, it took Shapley time to build the required level of trust with Bok.
Harvard 1929–1957
The Boks remained at Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
for almost thirty years, from 1929 until 1957, where he taught astronomy and directed the Harvard Observatory. Bart was steadily promoted through the academic ranks: he completed his Doctoral dissertation entitled "A Study of the Eta Carinae Region" in 1932, became an assistant professor in 1933, an associate professor in 1939, associate director of the Harvard Observatory by 1946, and he became a full professor in 1947 when he was appointed to the Robert Wheeler Wilson Chair in Astronomy (some sources say this happened in 1945). Meanwhile, Priscilla was also conducting her own research and writing with Bart, but she was not being paid, which prompted Bart to describe Shapley as "rather cheap when it came to hiring people".
The Boks had two children: a son, John Fairfield, in 1930 and a daughter, Joyce Annetta (now Mrs John Ambruster), in 1933. Priscilla stayed at home until the children finished high school, so she published less research herself in this period. Nevertheless, she was consistently involved with supporting Bart's research and their public outreach activities often put them together and gave her some degree of recognition. When Bart became a naturalized US citizen in 1938, he shortened his first name to "Bart".
Their marriage began a close scientific collaboration that would span the next four decades, in which the Royal Astronomical Society said "it is difficult and pointless to separate his achievements from hers". They co-authored a number of academic papers on star cluster
Star clusters are large groups of stars. Two main types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of ten thousand to millions of old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters are more loosely clust ...
s, stellar magnitude
Magnitude may refer to:
Mathematics
*Euclidean vector, a quantity defined by both its magnitude and its direction
*Magnitude (mathematics), the relative size of an object
*Norm (mathematics), a term for the size or length of a vector
*Order of ...
s, and the structure of the Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes our Solar System, with the name describing the galaxy's appearance from Earth: a hazy band of light seen in the night sky formed from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye ...
. Bok was fiercely interested in the mechanical processes which form star clusters and galaxies, and his paper "The Apparent Clustering of External Galaxies" (''Nature'', vol. 133, p. 578) was the first to demonstrate how dissipation of a star cluster relates to its density, and so by examining the clusters in our galaxy he concluded that it cannot be older than about twenty billion years.
Their enthusiasm for explaining astronomy to the public led to them being well known: they were described as "salesmen of the Milky Way" by ''The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' in 1936. Their main work together was a definitive undergraduate textbook and popular science book, ''The Milky Way'', "widely acclaimed as one of the most successful astronomical books ever published",[ which had five editions over forty years following its initial publication in 1941, and was translated into many languages.] The writing of this book, begun in 1937, was shared equally – according to Bart:
In the 1940s, Bok first observed small, dark clouds of dense cosmic dust
Cosmic dust, also called extraterrestrial dust, star dust or space dust, is dust which exists in outer space, or has fallen on Earth. Most cosmic dust particles measure between a few molecules and 0.1 mm (100 micrometers). Larger particles are c ...
and gas which would later become known as ''Bok globule
In astronomy, Bok globules are isolated and relatively small dark nebulae, containing dense cosmic dust and gas from which star formation may take place. Bok globules are found within H II regions, and typically have a mass of about 2 to 50 solar ...
s'' in the Milky Way. In a paper published in 1947, Bok and E.F. Reilly hypothesized that these clouds were "similar to insect's cocoons" that were undergoing gravitational collapse
Gravitational collapse is the contraction of an astronomical object due to the influence of its own gravity, which tends to draw matter inward toward the center of gravity. Gravitational collapse is a fundamental mechanism for structure formatio ...
to form new stars and star cluster
Star clusters are large groups of stars. Two main types of star clusters can be distinguished: globular clusters are tight groups of ten thousand to millions of old stars which are gravitationally bound, while open clusters are more loosely clust ...
s. This hypothesis was difficult to verify due to the observational difficulties of establishing what was happening inside a dense dark cloud that obscured all visible
Visibility, in meteorology, is a measure of the distance at which an object or light can be seen.
Visibility may also refer to:
* A measure of turbidity in water quality control
* Interferometric visibility, which quantifies interference contrast ...
light emitted from within it, but after Bok's death his ideas were confirmed when analyses of near infrared
Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
observations published in 1990 confirmed that stars were being born inside Bok globules.
The Bok family also traveled to spend time setting up two international facilities on opposite sides of the world. During 1941, Bok helped to set up the Tonantzintla Observatory in Tonantzintla, Mexico. In 1950, he set up the Schmidt Telescope at Harvard's Boyden Station
Boyden Observatory is an astronomical research observatory and science education centre located in Maselspoort, north-east of the city of Bloemfontein in Free State, South Africa. The observatory is managed by the Physics Department of the Un ...
in South Africa. While there, he and Priscilla also enjoyed the opportunity to study the southern stars, including ''Eta Carinae'' which had been the subject of Bart's doctoral dissertation.
Bok's record of success in setting up new observatories would guide the rest of his career. Starting in 1952 he led the efforts to fund and construct a major radio telescope facility at Harvard's Oak Ridge Observatory
The Oak Ridge Observatory (ORO, code: 801), also known as the George R. Agassiz Station, is located at 42 Pinnacle Road, Harvard, Massachusetts. It was operated by the Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian as a facility of the Smiths ...
. Unusually for his time, Bok believed that the combination of radio and optical astronomy could produce exceptional benefits. Initially, this was inspired by the difficulty and unreliability of visual star counting techniques, especially when there is obscuring dust. This combined approach proved to be vital in analyzing the interstellar medium, and particularly in developing an understanding of what was happening inside Bok Globules.[
]
Australia 1957–1966
In 1957, the Boks moved to Australia, where Bart took up the position of Director at Mount Stromlo Observatory
Mount Stromlo Observatory located just outside Canberra, Australia, is part of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Australian National University (ANU).
History
The observatory was established in 1924 as The Commonwea ...
in the Australian National University
The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
(ANU) in Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
, which he was to hold for the next nine years. His presence was a crucial factor in the development of optical astronomy in Australia, and its integration with the well-established field of radio astronomy. During his tenure, Bok established a thriving international graduate program at Stromlo which became known as "Harvard in the South", obtained funds from the Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
of the time, Robert Menzies
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...
, for a new telescope at Stromlo, and established a field observatory at Siding Spring.
He was a pioneer in the use of electronic computers for astronomical observing, and the first person to use them for any purpose at the ANU: in February 1960 he had the first one installed in the observatory.[ He was also a pioneer in taking advantage of mass media to promote astronomy: he made a television series which was broadcast on the ]ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
, reaching far more people than any of his predecessors dreamed of and helping to build awareness and support for astronomy in Australia.
By the early 1960s, Mount Stromlo had developed into one of the leading facilities for observational astronomy in the southern hemisphere.[ However, Bok appreciated the limitations of the site of Mount Stromlo due to weather and increasing light pollution, and he initiated a site-testing program which stretched across the country. In 1962, Siding Spring Mountain was chosen for the creation of a world-class telescope facility. As Siding Spring grew, Bok threw his support behind a new project: what would become Australia's largest optical telescope, the ]Anglo-Australian Telescope
The Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) is a 3.9-metre equatorially mounted telescope operated by the Australian Astronomical Observatory and situated at the Siding Spring Observatory, Australia, at an altitude of a little over 1,100 m. In 20 ...
.
This did not leave much time for astronomy research; Priscilla spent many nights at the Stromlo telescopes observing and analyzing their data. This suited her greater interest in basic observations such as determining stellar positions and providing calibrated magnitudes. Their close relationship and the way their personalities complemented one another supported their scientific efforts: Priscilla's empathy balanced Bart's energetic and dynamic nature.
In the subsequent editions of their book, the Boks made major changes to accommodate the rapid progress in galactic astronomy. The approachability of the text for the general public was particularly important to Priscilla, according to Bart:
Bok was a tireless promoter of astronomy to the general public, trying to keep to a routine of devoting three days each month to public lectures:
one in Canberra or near Canberra, one in a capital city, and one in the country ... I accepted almost any invitation I could get to give a lecture ... my price was that if I spoke to group of adults... I would lsoaddress the local high school and this paid off amazingly well in a direction that had never occurred to me, because in a high school audience there is generally a nephew or a niece of a Member of Parliament, and all the Members of Parliament learned about it.
This ability to "sell" astronomy to the public and especially to the Members of Parliament was crucial in winning support for such huge, and expensive, projects as the Anglo-Australian Observatory
The Australian Astronomical Observatory (AAO), formerly the Anglo-Australian Observatory, was an optical and near-infrared astronomy observatory with its headquarters in North Ryde in suburban Sydney, Australia. Originally funded jointly by the U ...
against competing scientific priorities. In the end, he did not get to see it completed; the formal agreement to construct the AAO was reached the year after he and Priscilla left Australia to return to the US.
Return to the US 1966–1983
In 1966, the Boks moved back to the US, where Bart took up the roles of Head of the Department of Astronomy at the University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory.
T ...
and Director of Steward Observatory
Steward Observatory is the research arm of the Department of Astronomy at the University of Arizona (UArizona). Its offices are located on the UArizona campus in Tucson, Arizona (US). Established in 1916, the first telescope and building were f ...
, posts which he held until 1970. He was largely responsible for the construction of the telescope at the Kitt Peak National Observatory
The Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) is a United States astronomy, astronomical observatory located on Kitt Peak of the Quinlan Mountains in the Arizona-Sonoran Desert on the Tohono Oʼodham Nation, west-southwest of Tucson, Arizona. With ...
, and oversaw a doubling of the university's staff and growth in the graduate student program until by 1970 it was ranked fifth in the US, and Steward was regarded as "one of the world's premier astronomical research institutions."[
From 1970, when he left his positions at Steward University and the University of Arizona, Bok became more actively involved in national and global organizations for professional astronomers. In 1970, he became Vice-President of the Executive Committee of the ]International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
(IAU), and in 1973 he was appointed for a second three-year term in the same position. Overlapping with this, he also served as president of the American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...
(AAS) from 1972 to 1974.
Priscilla suffered a stroke in 1972; her health declined in the following years, and Bok resigned his positions with the IAU and the AAS in 1974 and dedicated himself to her care. She died of a heart attack in November 1975.
In 1975 Bok coauthored the statement ''Objections to Astrology'', which was endorsed by 186 professional astronomers, astrophysicists, and other scientists, including nineteen winners of the Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
.[, cited in ] The statement was published in The Humanist
''The Humanist'' is an American bi-monthly magazine published in Washington, DC. It was founded in 1941 by American Humanist Association. It covers topics in science, religion, media, technology, politics and popular culture and provides ethical ...
and copies were sent to every major newspaper in the US. This led to the formation of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (now called the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a program within the US non-profit organization Center for Inquiry (CFI), which seeks to "prom ...
), of which he was a founding Fellow. In 2000, Bok was voted by readers of Skeptical Inquirer
''Skeptical Inquirer'' is a bimonthly American general-audience magazine published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI) with the subtitle: ''The Magazine for Science and Reason''.
Mission statement and goals
Daniel Loxton, writing in ...
magazine as one of the "outstanding skeptics of the twentieth century". At a meeting of the executive council of CSI in Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
in April 2011, Bok was selected for inclusion in CSI's Pantheon of Skeptics. The Pantheon of Skeptics was created by CSI to remember the legacy of deceased fellows of CSI and their contributions to the cause of scientific skepticism.
Bok continued as an emeritus professor at the University of Arizona, and he participated in or led several groups to view solar eclipse
A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of the Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs during an eclipse season, approximately every six month ...
s, including a trip to the eclipse near Bratsk
Bratsk ( rus, Братск, p=bratsk) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Angara River near the vast Bratsk Reservoir.
Etymology
The name sounds like the Russian word for "brother" ("", '' ...
in Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
in July 1981 and his last eclipse trip to what he called his "spiritual home" of Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
to view a totality that passed near the town of Salatiga
Salatiga ( jv, ꦯꦭꦠꦶꦒ) is a Cities of Indonesia, city in Central Java province, Indonesia. It covers an area of and had a population of 192,322 at the 2020 Indonesian census, 2020 Census. Located between the cities of Semarang and Sura ...
in June 1983.
Bok died of a heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
at his home in Tucson, Arizona
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
a little more than a month after that final trip. His body was bequeathed to the college of medicine at the University of Arizona.
Honors
;Honorary appointments
*Vice-president of the International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
(1970–74)[
*President of the ]American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...
(1972–74)
*Elected to the US National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
(1968)
*Honorary Member of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a ci ...
*Honorary Member of the Astronomical Society of Australia
The Astronomical Society of Australia (ASA) is the professional body representing astronomers in Australia. Established in 1966, it is incorporated in the Australian Capital Territory. Membership of the ASA is open to people "capable of contributi ...
[
*Honorary Member of the ]Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand
The Royal Astronomical Society of New Zealand (RASNZ) is the New Zealand national astronomical society. It is an association of professional and amateur astronomers with the prime objective to the ''promotion and extension of knowledge of astronom ...
[
*Corresponding member of the ]Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...
[
*Associate Fellow of the ]Royal Astronomical Society
(Whatever shines should be observed)
, predecessor =
, successor =
, formation =
, founder =
, extinction =
, merger =
, merged =
, type = NGO ...
, London[
;Awards
*Adion medal (1971) from Association pour le Développement International de l'Observatoire de Nice in France
* Jansky Prize (1972) awarded by the ]National Radio Astronomy Observatory
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) is a federally funded research and development center of the United States National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc. for the purpose of radio a ...
"to recognize outstanding contributions to the advancement of radio astronomy."
* Oranje-Nassau medal from the Netherlands[
*Catherine de Wolfe ]Bruce Medal
The Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal is awarded every year by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for outstanding lifetime contributions to astronomy. It is named after Catherine Wolfe Bruce, an American patroness of astronomy, and was firs ...
of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific (1977)
*Henry Norris Russell Lectureship The Henry Norris Russell Lectureship is awarded each year by the American Astronomical Society in recognition of a lifetime of excellence in astronomical research. The idea for the lectureship came from then society President Harlow Shapley in 1945, ...
(1982) awarded by the American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...
in recognition of a lifetime of excellence in astronomical research.
*Klumpke-Roberts Award
The Klumpke-Roberts Award, one of seven international and national awards for service to astronomy and astronomy education given by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, was established from a bequest by astronomer Dorothea Klumpke-Roberts to ...
(1982) awarded by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific to recognize outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy.
;Named after him
*Lunar crater Bok (jointly with his wife Priscilla) – a 43-km diameter crater on the far side of the Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
*Asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere.
...
1983 Bok (jointly with his wife Priscilla) – discovered by Elizabeth Roemer
Elizabeth "Pat" Roemer (September 4, 1929April 8, 2016) was an American astronomer and educator who specialized in astronomy with a particular focus on comets and minor planets. She was well-known for the recovery of lost comets, as well as for ...
in 1975.[For (1983) Bok, the naming citation reads in part: "This is the first minor planet discovered with the 229-cm telescope of the Stewart Observatory to be numbered. It is named for the Boks in recognition of their role in bringing the large reflector of the Steward Observatory into operation and for their support of the astrometric work on comets, minor planets, and satellites. This minor planet was at far southern declination at discovery (and observations at Wellington were important in obtaining a reliable orbit). This is also in fitting association with the Boks, who have devoted much effort to study of the structure of the southern Milky Way and to encouragement of astronomy in the Southern Hemisphere."]
*Bok globule
In astronomy, Bok globules are isolated and relatively small dark nebulae, containing dense cosmic dust and gas from which star formation may take place. Bok globules are found within H II regions, and typically have a mass of about 2 to 50 solar ...
s
*Bok Telescope
The Bok Telescope (also known as the 90-inch) is the largest telescope operated solely by Steward Observatory. It finds much use from astronomers from University of Arizona, Arizona State University, and Northern Arizona University, with instrumen ...
- the Steward Observatory's 90-inch (2.3 m) telescope was named after him in 1996.
*C/1949 N1 - A comet that Bok co-discovered.
;Memorial awards
*Bart J Bok Postdoctoral Fellowship, given out by the Astronomy Department of the University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory.
T ...
and Steward Observatory.
*The Bok Prize
The Bok Prize is awarded annually by the Astronomical Society of Australia and the Australian Academy of Science to recognise outstanding research in astronomy by honoring a student at an Australian university. The prize consists of the Bok Medal ...
is awarded annually by the Astronomical Society of Australia
The Astronomical Society of Australia (ASA) is the professional body representing astronomers in Australia. Established in 1966, it is incorporated in the Australian Capital Territory. Membership of the ASA is open to people "capable of contributi ...
since 1989 to recognise outstanding research in astronomy by an Honours student or eligible master's student at an Australian university.
*Another Bok Prize is awarded by the Harvard University's Department of Astronomy since 1958 to recognise research in the area of Milky Way research by observational methods.
*Two Priscilla and Bart Bok Awards are jointly awarded each year by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific and the American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...
to astronomy-related projects at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair The Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) is an annual science fair in the United States. It is owned and administered by the Society for Science, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. Each May, more tha ...
, in recognition of the Boks' advocacy for astronomy education and work in public outreach.
Selected publications
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Bok's ADS record
Notes
References
Further reading
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* Also available as
PDF version of the National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoir
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External links
Oral histories
Oral history interview transcript with Bart Bok on 15 May 1978, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session I
Oral history interview transcript with Bart Bok on 17 May 1978, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session II
Oral history interview transcript with Bart Bok on 19 May 1978, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session III
Oral history interview transcript with Bart Bok on 14 June 1978, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
- Session IV
Obituaries
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bok, Bart
1906 births
1983 deaths
20th-century American astronomers
American skeptics
20th-century Dutch astronomers
Dutch emigrants to the United States
Leiden University alumni
Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
People from Hoorn
People with acquired American citizenship
Harvard University faculty
Harvard College Observatory people