Robert M. Walker (February 6, 1929 – February 12, 2004) was an Americanphysicist, aplanetary scientist, the founder and director of McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences atWashington University in St. Louis, noted for his co-discovery of the etchability of nuclear particle tracks in solids,[1] as well as his conjecture thatmeteorites and lunar rocks contain a record of the ancient radiation history of various stars including theSun.[2][3][4][5][6]Asteroid 6372 was named Walker in his honor by theInternational Astronomical Union.[4]Walker was a member of theNational Academy of Sciences.[4][5]Walker was also a fellow of theAmerican Physical Society,[5] theAmerican Geophysical Union,[5] theMeteoritical Society[5] and theAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science.[5] He was also a founder and the first president of Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA).[5][6]
Walker was married to the cosmochemistGhislaine Crozaz.[8]