Riccardo Giovanelli (August 30, 1946 – December 14, 2022) was an Italian-born 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 ...

. He was an emeritus professor of astronomy at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States.

Background

Born at Praticello, in central Italy, Giovanelli spent his childhood years in western Argentina (in Mendoza and Tucuman) but returned with his family to Italy when he was ready to enter university. He studied physics first at the

University of Parma The University of Parma ( it, Università degli Studi di Parma, UNIPR) is a public university in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is organised in nine departments. As of 2016 the University of Parma has about 26,000 students. History During the ...

and graduated with his

laurea In Italy, the ''laurea'' is the main post-secondary academic degree. The name originally referred literally to the laurel wreath, since ancient times a sign of honor and now worn by Italian students right after their official graduation ceremony ...

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

in physics from the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

in 1969. His parents were partisans during World War II. After graduation, Giovanelli entered the graduate program at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, as a

Fulbright fellow The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

and received his PhD in astronomy in 1976. He undertook his PhD research as a graduate student in residence at 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 ...

in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1972 and 1973. From 1974 to 1976, he served as a civil volunteer teaching physics at the

National University of El Salvador The University of El Salvador or Universidad de El Salvador (UES) is the oldest and the most prominent university institution in El Salvador. It serves as the national university of the country. The main campus, Ciudad Universitaria, is located ...

, in substitution of his Italian military service. Upon completion of his PhD, he joined the staff of the

Arecibo Observatory The Arecibo Observatory, also known as the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC) and formerly known as the Arecibo Ionosphere Observatory, is an observatory in Barrio Esperanza, Arecibo, Puerto Rico owned by the US National Science F ...

of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center in Puerto Rico, eventually serving as head of the radio astronomy group as well as observatory site director. In 1991, Giovanelli joined the faculty at

as professor of astronomy. He was an expert in

observational cosmology Observational cosmology is the study of the structure, the evolution and the origin of the universe through observation, using instruments such as telescopes and cosmic ray detectors. Early observations The science of physical cosmology as it is ...

galaxy evolution The study of galaxy formation and evolution is concerned with the processes that formed a heterogeneous universe from a homogeneous beginning, the formation of the first galaxies, the way galaxies change over time, and the processes that have gen ...

and the application of radio spectroscopy for studies of large scale structure and galaxy evolution. He was a driving force behind the development of the

Cerro Chajnantor Atacama Telescope The Cerro Chajnantor Atacama Telescope (CCAT) is a proposed diameter telescope that is intended to reveal the cosmic origins of stars, planets, and galaxies with its submillimeter cameras and spectrometers enabled by superconducting detector ar ...

project of which he served as a director. He was a principal scientist on the

ALFALFA Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, and silage, as w ...

survey at

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a city and municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado and Ciales; east of Hatillo; and west of Barceloneta and Florida. It is about west of San Juan, the ...

. He was also a strong proponent in support of science in developing countries in South America. He was married to astronomer Martha Haynes.

Awards

In 1989 Giovanelli and Martha Haynes were awarded the

Henry Draper Medal The Henry Draper Medal is awarded every 4 years by the United States National Academy of Sciences "for investigations in astrophysics, astronomical physics". Named after Henry Draper, the medal is awarded with a gift of USD $15,000. The medal was ...

from the

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 ...

for their work on mapping the local universe.

References

External links

Riccardo Giovanelli
Cornell University
ALFALFA: The Arecibo Legacy Fast ALFA Survey. Team members
1946 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Italian astronomers 20th-century American astronomers University of Parma alumni University of Bologna alumni Indiana University alumni Cornell University faculty People from the Province of Reggio Emilia {{Italy-astronomer-stub