Joseph Kaplan

Joseph Kaplan (September 8, 1902 – October 3, 1991) was a Hungarian-born American physicist. ^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Kaplan was notable for his studies of atmospheric phenomena, for his international activities in geophysics.^[1][3] Kaplan also participated in efforts to launch the first Earth satellite.^[5] Kaplan was a member of the National Academy of Sciences,^[1][3] a fellow of the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences,^[3] chairman of the U.S. National Committee for the International Geophysical Year,^[1][4][5] the founder and first director of the Institute of Geophysics at the University of California (later known as the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics),^[1][4][5] an aerospace adviser to Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard M. Nixon,^[1][4] a recipient of the Smithsonian Institution's Hodgkins Medal in 1967,^[4] the head of the Air Force's Air Weather Service during World War II,^[1] a professor and professor emeritus of physics at the University of California, Los Angeles,^[1] a fellow of American Geophysical Union,^[3] an honorary member of American Meteorological Society,^[3] a fellow of American Physical Society,^[3] an honorary member of National Association of Science Writers,^[3] and a founding member of the International Academy of Astronautics.^[3]

The Los Angeles Times said that Kaplan was "a pioneer in the chemistry and physics of the stratosphere".^[4] The Baltimore Sun called him "an expert on auroras and similar lights in the sky".^[2]

Notable awards and distinctions

• the John Adams Fleming Award of the American Geophysical Union (1970)^[3]
• the Commemorative Medal for the 50th Anniversary of the American Meteorological Society (1969)^[3]
• the Hodgkins Medal and Prize from the Smithsonian Institution^[3]
• the Astronautical Award from the American Rocket Society^[3]
• the War Department's Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service (1947)^[3]
• the Air Force's Exceptional Civilian Service Award (1960 and 1969)^[3]
• the degree of doctor of science from Carleton College and the University of Notre Dame^[3]
• L.H.D. degrees from Yeshiva University, Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion, and the University of Judaism^[3]

Career and life

Kaplan was born in Tapolca, Hungary in 1902. In 1910 at the age of 8 he immigrated to the United States with his parents and 11 brothers and sisters. He graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a B.S. degree in chemistry and a M.S. and Ph.D. in physics. He spent his entire academic career at the University of California at Berkeley (1928–1970). Kaplan died of a heart attack on October 3, 1991 in Santa Monica, California at the age of 89.

References