Víctor M. Blanco | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Víctor Manuel Blanco Pagán (1918-03-10)March 10, 1918 |
| Died | March 8, 2011(2011-03-08) (aged 92) Vero Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Astronomer |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | |
| Thesis | Luminosity Function and Space Distribution of A0 Stars (1949) |
| Doctoral advisor | Robert Julius Trumpler |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Branch |  United States Army Air Forces |
| Years of service | 1940–1946 |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
Víctor Manuel Blanco (March 10, 1918 – March 8, 2011) was aPuerto Ricanastronomer who in 1959 discoveredBlanco 1, a stellar cluster.[1][2] Blanco was the second Director of theCerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory inChile, which had the largest telescope in theSouthern Hemisphere at the time.[3] In 1995, the 4-meter telescope was dedicated in his honor and named theVíctor M. Blanco Telescope; it is also known as the "Blanco 4m."[4]
Blanco (birth name:Víctor Manuel Blanco Pagán[note 1]) was one of nine siblings born in the town ofGuayama, Puerto Rico to Felipe Blanco, a policeman, and Adelfa Pagan de Blanco, a housewife. He received his primary and secondary education in his hometown. As a child, Blanco would often wonder about the stars and built a backyard telescope, thus his interest in astronomy. He entered theUniversity of Puerto Rico to study medicine but, after some time at the university, Blanco decided to study astronomy and moved to the city ofChicago. He entered theUniversity of Chicago, but was drafted into the military before he finished college.[5]
DuringWorld War II, Blanco served in theUS Army Air Force in the Pacific Theater. His duties in the military required that he repair and tune radar detectors. This permitted him to study atmospheric effects on radar waves. After being discharged from the military, he was granted college credit for his wartime work, and returned briefly to the University of Chicago where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree.[6]
Blanco was employed by theUniversity of Puerto Rico as an assistant professor ofastrometry, until he was recruited in 1948 to assist in polishing, calibrating and maintaining the mirrors of the 200-inchHale Telescope inCalifornia. He entered the University of California, Berkeley, where he continued his studies and earned his master's degree and, in 1949, his Doctorate in astronomy.[7] In 1949, he returned to Puerto Rico and reassumed his duties at the University of Puerto Rico.[8]
Blanco later served as the Director of the Astrometry and Astrophysics Division of theUnited States Naval Observatory.[6] The U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO) provides a wide range of astronomical data and products, and serves as the official source of time for theU.S. Department of Defense and the standard of time for the entire United States.[9] He also served inJava,Indonesia forUNESCO in the position of astronomer.
In 1959, while serving as a professor ofastrophysics at theCase Institute of Technology (renamed Case Western Reserve University in 1967) inCleveland,Ohio,[3] Blanco discovered anopen cluster. It was namedBlanco 1 in his honor, and is centered on the blue starZeta Sculptoris.[1] According toThe Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Blanco 1 exhibits subsolar ratios that are not observed among nearby field stars.[10] Together with his wife Betty, Blanco and Martin McCarthy conducted pioneering research into thestellar population in the central regions of our galaxy, and in theMagellanic Clouds. They discovered the change in the ratio of carbon stars toM-type stars from the nuclear bulge of our galaxy, in relation to bothLarge Magellanic Clouds andSmall Magellanic Clouds.[3]
In July 1967, Blanco became the second director of theCerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO). Located in Cerro Tololo mountain, Chile and founded in 1963, it is part of theNational (U.S.) Optical Astronomy Observatory known as "NOAO." Blanco assembled the scientific, engineering, and technical staff from scratch.[3]
When Blanco arrived at CTIO, there was a 60-inch telescope in operation. During his tenure theUniversity of Michigan's 0.6-m Curtis Schmidt moved there in 1967, CTIO installed a 0.9-m reflector in 1967 and a 1.5-m reflector in 1968, andYale University's 1-m reflector was installed there in 1973.[11]
In addition to these university installations, Blanco played a central role in persuading various agencies to participate in the construction of a four-meter telescope. During its construction, Blanco personally oversaw the alignment and calibration of the telescope. The telescope, which is the southern twin of the four-meter instrument atKitt Peak National Observatory, opened in 1974. This four-meter telescope (also known as a "4-m") became the most productive telescope in the Southern Hemisphere.[3]
As director of CTIO, Blanco also maintained excellent relations with the Chilean astronomical community and the Chilean public at large. His tenure spanned the presidencies ofEduardo Frei Montalva,Salvador Allende, andAugusto Pinochet.[3] Blanco was director of CTIO until 1981, when he was succeeded by Osmer.[4]
Telescopio Víctor M. Blanco
En reconocimiento a los años de destacada labor y servicio en Cerro Tololo.
In appreciation for many years of outstanding leadership and service at CTIO.
On 8 September 1995, in a well-attended mountaintop ceremony, the CTIO 4-m telescope was officially named theVíctor M. Blanco Telescope, also known as "The Blanco 4m."[12] Amongst its many uses, this telescope is used to study cosmic acceleration - the possibility that our universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. At the main entrance to the building a large bronze plaque reads,[3] in both Spanish and English(see adjunct box).
Asteroid9550 Victorblanco, discovered by American astronomerEdward Bowell at theAnderson Mesa Station in Arizona in 1985, was named in his honor.[13][14] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 9 March 2001 (M.P.C. 42359).[15] Thismain-belt asteroid measures approximately 12 kilometers in diameter and belongs to the main belt'sbackground population.[16]
Blanco was the co-author of many articles in astrophysics including:
He was a member of theInternational Astronomical Union in the following divisions:[21]
Blanco died on March 8, 2011, at Indian River Medical Center inVero Beach, Florida. He was survived by his wife of 42 years, Betty Blanco; a son, Daniel Blanco; a stepson, David Mintz; and a stepdaughter, Elizabeth Vitell.[22]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
