May 16 In Physics History
Physics history will help you to develop a better understanding of the physics world!
birthdays & deaths
Explore all birthdays & deaths of physicists occurred on this day with their short biography!
physics Events
Know all important discoveries made by physicists & events happened on this day with complete information!
May 16 In Physics History - Births – Physicists born on May 16
Roy Kerr (Born On Born 16 May 1934)
He is a New Zealander mathematician who deduced the unique two-parameter family of solutions that describes the space-time around black holes. He solved Albert Einstein’s field equations of general relativity and described the rotating black holes. Like this, he contributed to the field of astrophysics. The two parameters that he used are the mass of the black hole and the angular momentum of a black hole. In his honor, the rotating black holes are often called Kerr black holes. He demonstrated that ergo-region is a region outside the event horizon that is vortex-like. The ergo-region drags space and time around with the rotating black hole.
Nancy Roman (16 May 1925 - 26 December 2018)
She was an American astronaut who first held an executive position at NASA as a woman. She was nicknamed “mother of Hubble” because she planned the development of the Hubble Space Telescope. She was also the first chief of astronomy at Space Science headquarters. At the age of 11, she formed an astronomy club with classmates because of her interests and she later went on to a Ph.D. in astronomy. She rose to become manager of the astronomical data center after joining NASA in 1959. She continued as a contractor at Goddard even after retiring encouraged young women to pursue careers in science and engineering.
J. Georg Bednorz (Born On 16 May 1950)
He is a German physicist who discovered superconductivity in a new class of materials at temperatures higher than previously been thought attainable. For this discovery, he shared the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1987. He along with Karl Alex Müller surprised the whole world by reporting superconductivity in a layered ceramic material at a temperature of 33 Kelvin. This discovery resulted in an avalanche of research worldwide and discovered dozens of new superconductors. Now he develops complex oxide compounds for possible uses in microelectronics.
May 16 In Physics History - Deaths – Physicists died on May 16
Raymond Arthur Lyttleton (7 May 1911 - 16 May 1995)
He was an English mathematician and theoretical astronomer who demonstrated the large-scale existence of interstellar hydrogen with Fred Hoyle in 1939. This demonstration challenged the existing belief that space was devoid of interstellar gas. They applied nuclear physics to explain how energy is generated by stars in early 1940. He described the stability of rotating liquid masses in his monograph and later he extended it and explained that the Earth had a liquid core because of the intense pressure and temperature. He also proposed the electrostatic theory of expanding universe along with Hermann Bondi in 1959.
Heinrich Rohrer (6 Jun 1933 - 16 May 2013)
He was a Swiss physicist who shared the Nobel Prize for Physics with Gerd Binnig in 1986 for inventing the scanning tunneling microscope. The electron microscope of Ruska of the 1930’s was unable to show surface structure at the atomic level. They begin work on the scanning tunneling microscope in 1978 which used a fine probe within a few angstroms of the surface of the sample. A positive voltage on the probe enables electrons to move from the sample to the probe by the tunnel effect. The detected current can be used to keep the probe at a constant distance from the surface. 3D images of the surface can be traced as the probe moves in parallel lines.
Alfred O. C. Nier (28 May 1911 -16 May 1994)
He was an American physicist who applied the decay of Potassium-42 to measure the age of geological materials and discovered several new isotopes. He refined the mass spectrometric process to distinguish isotopes. The isotopes discovered by him included S36, Ca48, Ca 46, and Os186. He showed that the ratio of radioactive isotopes of Radium and its decay product can be used to estimate the age of rocks. He showed that the rarer uranium-235 undergoes fission and was active in the separation of the isotopes U-238 and U-238.
Baron Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Fourier (21 Mar 1768 - 16 May 1830)
He was a French mathematician and administrator who is famous for his influence on mathematical physics through his “The Analytical Theory of Heat”. He introduced the Fourier Series to aid in solving conduction equations. This series allows the function of any variable to be expanded to a series of sines of its multiples.
May 16 In Physics History - Events – Physics Events of May 16
The Safe Landing of Space Shuttle Endeavour
The space shuttle Endeavour completed its maiden voyage in 1992 with the safe landing on runway 22 at Edwards Air force base in the desert of California. The drag-chute was first used in this mission for the shuttle landing. It was launched on 7 May 1992 and the mission STS 49 included the first 3 person spacewalk and a private communications satellite for repair and reboot. The satellite weighing 4.5 tons had been stranded in an unusable orbit. It was equipped with the new perigee kick motor after capture.
