Az ustokos- es meteorcsillagaszat nagy oregje tavozott kozolunk: Fred
Whipple tegnap elhunyt.

Professor Fred Whipple died today, a few months shy of his
98th birthday. He had worked at the Harvard College Observatory
since 1931 and from 1955 to 1973 directed the Smithsonian
Astrophysical Observatory here.  He was most famous for his
theory of comets as ´dirty snowballs.´  He had foreseen the
artificial satellite era and was prepared with a world-wide
tracking network, Moonwatch, when Sputnik was launched on
4 October 1957.  Fred initiated SAO´s ground-based observatory
on Mt. Hopkins in Arizona and was instrumental in the design
and construction of the Multiple-Mirror Telescope.

A memorial service for Fred will be announced in the Fall.
In the meantime, his wife, Babbie, would prefer no phone calls,
visits, or cards.  Visiting arrangements will be
made at a later date.