Thomas Neil Davis (February 1, 1932 – December 10, 2016) was a professor of
geophysics
Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' so ...
from the
University of Alaska Fairbanks
The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for c ...
and the author of several books. Born in
Greeley, Colorado
Greeley is the List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, Weld County, Colorado, ...
, Davis received his B.S in geophysics from
University of Alaska Fairbanks
The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for c ...
in 1955, an M.S. in geophysics from
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
in 1957, and a Ph.D. in geophysics from University of Alaska Fairbanks in 1961.
Davis spent most of his working career at the
Geophysical Institute, pioneering the use of all-sky and low-level light
camera
A camera is an optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), with a ...
s for the study of the
aurora borealis
An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...
and conducting rocket studies of the aurora. With
Masahisa Sugiura (while both were at
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...
Goddard Space Flight Center) he introduced the AE (auroral electrojet) index now commonly used as a measure of solar-terrestrial interaction. A student of
Beno Gutenberg
Beno Gutenberg (; June 4, 1889 – January 25, 1960) was a German-American seismologist who made several important contributions to the science. He was a colleague and mentor of Charles Francis Richter at the California Institute of Technolog ...
and
Charles Richter
Charles Francis Richter (; April 26, 1900 – September 30, 1985) was an American seismologist and physicist.
Richter is most famous as the creator of the Richter magnitude scale, which, until the development of the moment magnitude scale in 19 ...
at Caltech, he also has done work in observational
seismology
Seismology (; from Ancient Greek σεισμός (''seismós'') meaning "earthquake" and -λογία (''-logía'') meaning "study of") is the scientific study of earthquakes and the propagation of elastic waves through the Earth or through other ...
.
Books and publications
Fiction
* 2004. The Great Alaska Zingwater Caper.
McRoy & Blackburn, Publishers.
* 1997. Battling Against Success. McRoy & Blackburn, Publishers.
* 1994. Caught in the Sluice. McRoy & Blackburn, Publishers.
Nonfiction
* 2011. The Painting on the Window Blind: the story of an unknown artist and a daring Civil War spy. IUniverse.
* 2008. Mired in the Health Care Morass: An Alaskan Takes on America's Dysfunctional Medical System for his Uninsured Daughter. Alaska-Yukon Press and Ester Republic Press.
* 2006. Rockets Over Alaska: The Genesis of
Poker Flat. Alaska-Yukon Press.
* 2001. Permafrost. A guide to frozen ground in transition.
University of Alaska Press
The University Press of Colorado is a nonprofit publisher supported partly by Adams State College, Adams State University, Colorado State University, Fort Lewis College, Metropolitan State University of Denver, the University of Colorado at Boulde ...
.
* 1993. The College Hill Chronicles. How the University of Alaska Came of Age. University of Alaska Foundation.
* 1992. The Aurora Watcher's Handbook. University of Alaska Press.
* 1984. ENERGY/ALASKA. University of Alaska Press.
* 1982. Alaska Science Nuggets. University of Alaska Press.
Columns
* 2007–2011. "Dose of Reality": monthly column appearing in ''
The Ester Republic''.
* 1976–1982. "Alaska Science Nuggets": weekly science column appearing in the ''
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
The '' Fairbanks Daily News-Miner'' is a morning daily newspaper serving the city of Fairbanks, Alaska, the Fairbanks North Star Borough, the Denali Borough, and the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the farthest north ...
''.
References
Sources
Neil Davis' webpagehealth issues blogUniversity of Alaska Stories Behind the NamesNeil Davis helped propel UAF with unlikely homemade rocket range
1932 births
2016 deaths
American geophysicists
California Institute of Technology alumni
Writers from Fairbanks, Alaska
People from Greeley, Colorado
People from North Pole, Alaska
University of Alaska Fairbanks alumni
University of Alaska Fairbanks faculty
Writers from Colorado
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