Carlos Graef Fernández (February 25, 1911 – January 13, 1988) was a Mexican physicist and mathematician. A graduate of the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

(UNAM) and the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

(MIT), he was a founding member of the Mexican Mathematical Society and the Mexican Physical Society. He helped to establish the Tonantzintla Observatory and he later directed it. He received the National Prize for Arts and Sciences in 1970.

Biography

Graef Fernández was born in Guanaceví, Durango, where his father was a

mining engineer Mining engineering is the extraction of minerals from the ground. It is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, exploration, excavation, geology, metallurgy, geotechnical engineering and surveying. A mining engineer m ...

. He had two younger siblings; his brother Hermann became an accomplished physician. He attributed an early interest in science to a physics book that his mother gave him as a child. Graef Fernández first studied at a German school in Mexico, then went to Technische Hochschule Darmstadt (today

Technische Universität Darmstadt The Technische Universität Darmstadt (official English name Technical University of Darmstadt, sometimes also referred to as Darmstadt University of Technology), commonly known as TU Darmstadt, is a research university in the city of Darmsta ...

) in the German city of

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it the ...

for a couple of years before returning to Mexico. He completed his undergraduate education at UNAM, and he was influenced by UNAM scientists

Manuel Sandoval Vallarta Manuel Sandoval Vallarta (11 February 1899 – 18 April 1977) was a Mexican physicist. He was a Physics professor at both MIT and the Institute of Physics at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Biography Sandoval Vallarta ...

and Sotero Prieto, who each mentored several successful Mexican scientists. Awarded a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

and other assistance, including a stipend awarded by Mexican president

Lázaro Cárdenas Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940. Previously, he served as a general in the Constitutional Army during the Mexican Revo ...

, Graef Fernández went to MIT. Around that time, he married Alicia Sánchez Castell and they later had three children. He completed a doctorate at MIT in 1940 and worked at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. At Harvard, Graef Fernández met

Luis Enrique Erro Luis Enrique Erro Soler (7 January 1897 – 18 January 1955) was a Mexican astronomer, politician, and educational reformer. Born in Mexico City, Erro studied civil engineering and accounting, among other subjects. He occupied the post of head ...

, who invited him to join the effort to found the Tonantzintla Observatory in the Mexican state of

Puebla Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...

. In ''The Skin of the Sky'', Graef Fernández is described as "small, round and prone to a cordiality that made him lovable"; he seemed an unlikely partner for Erro, who was a slender, elegant man with a hearing aid. Ultimately, Graef Fernández was more interested in studying gravitational issues than astrophysics, so he sought an academic position. He joined the UNAM faculty, where he directed the Institute of Physics and the Faculty of Sciences. Graef Fernández organized the meeting that led to the establishment of the Mexican Mathematical Society in 1943. He was also a founding member of the Mexican Physical Society in 1951. The society awards the Carlos Graef Fernández Prize. He was awarded the National Prize for Arts and Sciences in 1970. Graef Fernández served on numerous committees related to the

nuclear industry Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced by ...

. He was made an emeritus professor at UNAM in 1974 and died in 1988.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graef Fernández, Carlos 1911 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Mexican physicists 20th-century Mexican mathematicians Mexican people of German descent People from Durango National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni Academic staff of the National Autonomous University of Mexico Technische Universität Darmstadt alumni National Prize for Arts and Sciences (Mexico)