Parker was worldwide known for proposing the principle of the solar wind– a concept that was first satisfied with uncertainty to outright ridicule. Parker went on to transform the field of astrophysics, unraveling the complex physics behind magnetic fields in space and the characteristics of plasma.
” I have never made a considerable proposition however what there was a crowd who said, Aint so, cant potentially be,” Parker reacted.” Physics 101 is Gene Parkers documents. It doesnt matter what you do, Gene Parker turns up somewhere in that literature,” said NASA Heliophysics Director Nicky Fox.
That very same year, Parker was inquired about the recommendations he would provide to early-career scientists.
Parker, imagined in 1977. The solar wind is noticeable in the halo around the sun throughout an eclipse. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Hanna Holborn Special Collections Research
” I have actually never ever made a significant proposition however what there was a crowd who said, Aint so, cant perhaps be,” Parker responded. “If you do something brand-new or ingenious, expect trouble. Believe critically about it due to the fact that if youre incorrect, you want to be the first one to know that.”
” I dont think it remains in any way an overstatement to state that the field of heliophysics exists today mostly because of the work of Dr. Eugene Parker,” said Nicky Fox, director of NASAs Heliophysics Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington and a pal of Parkers. “Even though Dr. Parker is no longer with us, his discoveries and legacy will live permanently.”
Prof. Eugene Parker discusses his scientific research on the sun, including his landmark discovery of the solar wind. Credit: Video by UChicago Creative
Utter rubbish
Born in 1927 in Houghton, Michigan, Parker completed his bachelors degree in physics from Michigan State University in 1948 and his Ph.D. from Caltech in 1951. He hung out as a trainer and assistant teacher at the University of Utah before accepting a position in 1955 at the University of Chicago, where he remained for the rest of his career.
In 1957, Parker was a young assistant teacher when he turned his attention to the temperature level of the corona of the sun. Going through the mathematics, he figured out the conditions should produce a supersonic flow of particles off the suns surface.
The concept was roundly slammed. “The very first reviewer on the paper stated, Well I would suggest that Parker go to the library and read up on the topic before he tries to compose a paper about it, due to the fact that this is utter rubbish,” Parker informed UChicago News in 2018.
” Physics 101 is Gene Parkers documents. It doesnt matter what you do, Gene Parker shows up someplace in that literature,” said NASA Heliophysics Director Nicky Fox. Credit: Photo by Jean Lachat/University of Chicago
The paper may not have been released however for Parkers associate at the University, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar. The editor of the journal and a future Nobel laureate, Chandrasekhar didnt like the concept either– but he couldnt find a flaw with Parkers mathematics, so he overrode the customers and released the paper.
Soon afterward, in 1962, NASAs Mariner II spacecraft flew to Venus and came across a constant stream of particles. This flow, called the solar wind, ended up being exceptionally prominent on the workings of the planetary system, including our lives in the world. It blankets the planets, safeguarding us from hazardous radiation– however also periodically interrupting our communications, in the case of solar flares.
” Gene Parker was a legendary figure in our field– his vision of the sun and the planetary system was method ahead of his time,” stated Angela Olinto, the Albert A. Michelson Distinguished Service Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics and dean of the Physical Sciences Division at the University of Chicago. “It is only fitting that Genes name is rather literally written in our star, the sun, and in the physics that explain stars.”
Over his profession, Parker also went on to study cosmic rays and the magnetic fields of galaxies, amongst numerous other associated subjects. His seminal concepts consist of the origin of magnetic fields, referred to as dynamo theory; quick dissipation of electromagnetic fields; the structure of magnetized shock waves; and the diffusion of high-energy cosmic rays.
” It is only fitting that Genes name is rather literally written in our star.”
— Angela Olinto, dean of the Physical Sciences Division
His name is littered across astrophysics: the Parker instability, which explains electromagnetic fields in galaxies; the Parker equation, which explains particles moving through plasmas; the Sweet-Parker model of electromagnetic fields in plasmas; and the Parker limitation on the flux of magnetic monopoles.
” The University and the department has lost one of its giants,” stated Michael Turner, the Bruce V. and Diana M. Rauner Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Astronomy and Astrophysics at UChicago and a coworker of Parkers for decades. “Gene changed the course of science with his deal with magnetic fields literally everywhere in the universes, however he remained friendly and simple, with a wry funny bone.
Parker spoke at the University of Chicago for NASAs statement of the naming of the Parker Solar Probe in 2017. Credit: Photo by Jean Lachat
” He ranked up there with Stephen Hawking in his ability to express the essence of a problem, scientific or otherwise, in a couple of clear sentences.”
Parker twice worked as chair of the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and likewise worked as chair of the astronomy section of the National Academy of Sciences.
Prof. Eugene Parker and his family view the launch of the Parker Solar Probe on August 12 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Credit: Video by UChicago Creative, photo by Glenn Benson/NASA
” Gene represented to me the ideal physicist– accomplished and fantastic, personalized, articulate, but likewise modest,” said Robert Rosner, the William E. Wrather Distinguished Service Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics and a longtime colleague. “I will never forget the satisfaction he took in exploring a science issue, and his great physical insights which were then upheld by his analytical abilities. And one can never ever forget the encouragement he provided to everyone he engaged with– his own trainees and postdocs, and his associates. His passing undoubtedly marks a terrific loss for all of us.”
He retired from the University in 1995 however stayed active in the field, publishing books and short articles.
In 2017, NASA revealed that it was naming its landmark solar objective after Parker as an acknowledgment of his contributions to the field of heliophysics.
” It was so interesting to have the honor of taking Gene into the cleanroom at the Applied Physics Lab to introduce him to “his” spacecraft– and of course I stated “Parker, meet Parker,” said Fox.
” The method his eyes illuminated at every brand-new image or data plot– that was the real Gene, always making every effort for more information about our universe.”
— Nicky Fox, director of NASAs Heliophysics Division
On the early morning of August 12, 2018, Parker was at Cape Canaveral with 3 generations of his family to witness the launch of his name Parker Solar Probe, which has considering that completed numerous revolutions around the sun and collected remarkable information.
” The ongoing delight that Gene revealed whenever I shared new arise from the mission with him– the way his eyes lit up at every brand-new image or information plot– that was the real Gene, always making every effort to find out more about our universe,” Fox stated.
Eugene Parker blows out candle lights on a cake in event of his 90th birthday in 2017, surrounded by associates including chair of the physics department Young-Kee Kim, left. Credit: Photo by Jean Lachat
Amongst Parkers many awards are the U.S. National Medal of Science, the Kyoto Prize, the Crafoord Prize, the American Physical Society Medal for Exceptional Achievement in Research and its James Clerk Maxwell Prize. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, and was a fellow of the American Physical Society and a Legacy Fellow of the American Astronomical Society.
He authored 4 books: Interplanetary Dynamical Processes (1963 ), Cosmical Magnetic Fields: Their Origin and Their Activity (1979 ), Spontaneous Current Sheets in Magnetic Fields, with Applications to Stellar X-rays (1994 ), and Conversations on Electric and Magnetic Fields in the Cosmos (2007 ).
” We are devastated by the loss of my father, however we know his tradition spans not just our friends and family, but the global neighborhood of researchers around the world,” stated his boy Eric Parker. “We extend our thankfulness to everyone who has actually connected with memories, for his associates for many years who worked with him to check out a topic which offered him much delight, and for the lots of individuals at NASA and the Applied Physics Laboratory who invited my daddy and offered him an extensive gift– the possibility to see the launch of the Parker Solar Probe, which moved him deeply.”
Parker was welcomed to participate in a ceremony in Sweden next month to commemorate the Crafoord Prize, which he won in 2020. His family prepares to go to the ceremony on Parkers behalf.
Parker is survived by his wife Niesje, to whom he was wed for 67 years, along with bro Phillip; son Eric Glenn Parker (wed to Susan) and daughter Joyce Marie Parker (married to Ed); grandchildren Owen Loh (married to Allison), Miles Loh (wed to Michelle), and Nolan Loh (fiancée Hillary Wang); and great-grandchildren Lena and Elliott.
For more on the life and death of Eugene N. Parker, see NASA Mourns Passing of Visionary Heliophysicist Eugene Parker.
Eugene Parker, University of Chicago Prof. Emeritus of Astronomy and Astrophysics, is kept in mind for critical contributions to the understanding of our sun and solar system Credit: Photo by John Zich/University of Chicago
Prof. Emeritus Eugene N. Parker, a pioneering astrophysicist whose contributions to solar physics were so enormous that NASA called its Parker Solar Probe objective after him, passed away March 15. He was 94.
Parker was globally understood for proposing the idea of the solar wind– a concept that was first met skepticism to straight-out ridicule. The theory was later shown to be proper, reshaping our photo of space and the planetary system. Parker went on to change the field of astrophysics, deciphering the complex physics behind electromagnetic fields in space and the characteristics of plasma.
In August 2018, at the age of 91, he ended up being the first person to witness the launch of their name spacecraft.
