Einar A. Tandberg-Hanssen (6 August 1921 – 22 July 2011) was a Norwegian-American astrophysicist with a specialty in solar physics.

Background

Tandberg-Hanssen was born in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, secon ...

, Norway. He was the son of Birger Tandberg-Hanssen (1883-1951) and Mona Meier (1895-1967). He grew up in Langesund and

Skien Skien () is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. In modern times it is regarded as part of the traditional region of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the ...

where he

finished Finished may refer to: * ''Finished'' (novel), a 1917 novel by H. Rider Haggard * ''Finished'' (film), a 1923 British silent romance film * "Finished" (short story), a science fiction short story by L. Sprague de Camp See also *Finishing (disa ...

his secondary education in 1941. He took his undergraduate degree in astronomy at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

in 1950, and after fellowships at Institut d'astrophysique de Paris,

Caltech 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 ...

, High Altitude Observatory and the

Cavendish Laboratory The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the School of Physical Sciences. The laboratory was opened in 1874 on the New Museums Site as a laboratory for experimental physics and is named ...

, he took his doctorate at the University of Oslo in 1960. His thesis was titled ''An Investigation of the Temperature Conditions in Prominence with a Special Study of the Excitation of Helium''.

Career

Tandberg-Hanssen was briefly a professor at the University in Oslo, before working at the High Altitude Observatory in

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Colora ...

from 1961 to 1974. He was then a senior research scientist, later deputy director at the Space Science Laboratory at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in ...

. From 1987 to 1993 he was the center's director. After retiring, he also served part-time as professor of physics at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publ ...

. Tandberg-Hanssen was vice president of Commission 10 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 ...

from 1979 to 1982 and president from 1982 to 1985. He was president of the Federation of Astronomical and Geophysical Data Analysis Services from 1990 to 1994. He was a fellow of the

Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters ( no, Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway. History The Royal Frederick Unive ...

from 1982 and received the NASA Exceptional Service Medal. He died in July 2011 in Huntsville.

Selected works

*''Solar Activity'' (1967) *''Solar Prominences'' (1974) *''The Physics of Solar Flares'' (1988) *''The Nature of Solar Prominences'' (1995) *''The Physics of Solar Flares'' (2009) *''Solar and Interplanetary Dynamics'' (2013)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tandberg-Hanssen, Einar 1921 births 2012 deaths Scientists from Bergen University of Oslo alumni Academic staff of the University of Oslo NASA people University of Alabama faculty Norwegian astrophysicists American astrophysicists Norwegian emigrants to the United States Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Recipients of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal