John Robert Spreiter is an American physicist who is known for pioneering and fundamental work on aeronautics and transonic aerodynamics in the mid-1940s – 1970s, as well as theoretical works on the interaction of the solar wind with the planet’s magnetospheres and ionospheres (1960– 1990s).
| John Robert Sprayter | |
|---|---|
| John robert spreiter | |
 | |
| Date of Birth | October 23, 1921 |
| Place of Birth | Staples , Minnesota , USA |
| Date of death | February 6, 2000 (78 years old) |
| A place of death | Maui , Hawaii , USA |
| Scientific field | physics |
| Place of work | Stanford University |
| Alma mater | University of Minnesota , Stanford University |
| Known as | transonic aerodynamics and the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere and ionosphere |
Biography
Sprayer was born in 1921 in the small town of Staples, Minnesota, and his childhood, which he liked to talk about, fell on the Great Depression . At an early age he became interested in aviation and spent a lot of time designing flying models of airplanes . John graduated from school as the best student in the class and in 1939 entered the University of Minnesota , who graduated in 1943 with a diploma of an aircraft engineer.
After graduation, Sprayter got a job at the new Ames Research Center of the National Aeronautical Advisory Committee . There, John was engaged in the mechanics of aircraft, especially the aerodynamics of fast flight, and studied the stresses in the structure of airframes caused by the exit from high-speed diving . During the war, Sprayter served in the naval department of the center ( Eng. Ames Naval Detachment ).
Then Sprayter continued his education at Stanford University and received a master 's degree in technical sciences in 1947, and then a Ph.D. in applied mechanics in 1954 for his research in the field of transonic aerodynamics of flows near surfaces and wings . In 1947, immediately after defending his master's thesis, Sprayter moved to the theoretical department of the Ames Center (where he then worked for 15 years [2] ) and developed the principles of the theory of transonic wing flow, summarizing the results of Max Munch and Robert Jones and obtaining expressions applicable in areas up to -, near- and supersonic flow around wings of small elongation, and then generalizing the theory to cruciform wings used in rockets [3] . In collaboration with Max Hislet and Harvard Lomax ( Eng. Max Heaslet, Harvard Lomax ) John also released an important work on the linear theory of transonic wing flow [3] . The group in which he worked made a key contribution to the issue of technical safety of [4] [2] .
In 1951-1992, Sprayter worked at Stanford, first at the Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and then, from 1968, a full professor of applied mechanics, aeronautics and astronautics at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (he taught courses in geophysical hydrodynamics , atmospheric physics and outer space , resistance materials ), after retirement - an honorary professor of applied mechanics at Stanford University.
In 1962, Sprayter decided to apply his knowledge of aerodynamics to the problems of outer space physics and took the post of head of the NASA Space Physics Theoretical Department [2] . As Joan Feynman , who worked with him on magnetosphere theory in the 1960s, pointed out: “In the early 1960s, we were not sure that the solar wind was a continuous medium, and the phrase“ collisionless shock wave ”was an oxymoron.” ( Eng. At the start of the 1960's we were not sure the solar wind was continuous and 'collisionless shock' was an oxymoron ) [4] . The sprayer was among those researchers who revolutionized the physics of the magnetosphere .
His theoretical work on the magnetohydrodynamics of the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetospheres of the planets was subsequently brilliantly confirmed in satellite data. Spreiter’s contribution to the physics of the magnetopause , the front of the head shock wave and the is fundamental, and he also extended the theory of the magnetosphere to other planets of the Solar System. In the 1990s, the models of Spreiter and his former student, Steve Stahara, became an important part of space weather predictions , in particular geomagnetic storms .
In 1969, in connection with obtaining the full professor position at Stanford, Sprayter resigned from NASA [2] . John retired in 1992, but was hired by Stanford University for another year. At that time, Sprayter and Professor Stewart Gillmor were the editors of The Discovery of the Magnetosphere , which combined the memories of many scientists working on the physics of outer space. In 1994, Sprayter became a member of the American Geophysical Union [5] , in addition, he was a member of the British Royal Astronomical Society and the [2] .
He died on Maui in 2000 after a two-year battle with cancer. In September 2000, an international conference was held in his honor in Turkey.
Personal life
Colleagues noted Spreiter’s wide knowledge, calmness and goodwill in any scientific debate [1] [4] [2] . John loved tennis , swimming , skiing , travel and photography. [2]
Married in 1953, wife - Brenda Owens Spreiter ( born Brenda Owens Spreiter ) - survived John. They had four daughters: Terry, Janet, Christina and Hilary ( born Terry Spreiter; Janet Spreiter; Christine Spreiter; Hilary Spreiter ).
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Dawn Levy. John Spreiter, professor emeritus of applied mechanics, dies // Stanford News Service. - 2000. - November 4.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Stahara S. John R. Spreiter (1921-2000) (Eng.) // EOS Transactions. - 2000. - Vol. 81 . - P. 628-629 . - DOI : 10.1029 / EO081i051p00628-03 . - .
- ↑ 1 2 Edwin P. Hartman. Wing Theory // Adventures in Research: A History of Ames Research Center 1940-1965 : [ eng. ] . - Washington, DC: Scientific and Technical Information Division OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY UTILIZATION National Aeronautics and Space Administration , 1970. - P. 155. - (NASA Center History Series).
- ↑ 1 2 3 Charles R. Steele, Holt Ashley, Walter Vincenti . Memorial Resolution: John Robert Spreiter, Ph.D. JOHN ROBERT SPREITER, Ph.D. (1921-2000) , Stanford Report (April 21, 2004). Date of treatment January 5, 2016.
- ↑ AGU Fellows . Space Physics and Aeronomy, AGU. Date of treatment January 5, 2016.