Jean Coulomb (7 November 1904 – 26 February 1999) was a French geophysicist and

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

, and one of the early members of the

Bourbaki group Nicolas Bourbaki () is the collective pseudonym of a group of mathematicians, predominantly French alumni of the École normale supérieure - PSL (ENS). Founded in 1934–1935, the Bourbaki group originally intended to prepare a new textbook in ...

of mathematicians.

Biography

From April 1935 to 1937, he was a member of the Bourbaki group of mathematicians. He was a professor in the Faculty of Sciences of Paris from 1941 to 1972, and director of the

Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris The Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris - Université de Paris (IPGP, University of Paris; French for "Paris Institute of Earth Physics") is a French governmental, non-profit research and higher education establishment located in Paris, dedica ...

from 1941 to 1959. He was director-general of CNRS, the French

National Centre for Scientific Research The French National Centre for Scientific Research (french: link=no, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,63 ...

from 1957 to 1962, president of

CNES The (CNES; French: ''Centre national d'études spatiales'') is the French government space agency (administratively, a "public administration with industrial and commercial purpose"). Its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is und ...

from 1962 to 1967, and president of the Bureau des Longitudes from 1967 to 1969. Coulomb was the President of the Société astronomique de France (SAF), the French astronomical society, from 1958-1960. From 1967 to 1971, he was also president of the

International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG; french: Union géodésique et géophysique internationale, UGGI) is an international non-governmental organization dedicated to the scientific study of Earth and its space environment us ...

(IUGG), and from 1972 to 1974 of the International Council for Science (ICSU). In 1960, he was elected to the French Academy of Sciences, and was its president from 1976 to 1977. His work was in the fields of

seismology Seismology (; from Ancient Greek σεισμός (''seismós'') meaning "earthquake" and -λογία (''-logía'') meaning "study of") is the scientific study of earthquakes and the propagation of elastic waves through the Earth or through other ...

(theory of surface waves), geomagnetism, and

meteorology Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did no ...

(atmospheric electricity and the physics of clouds).

Awards and distinctions

*1956 — Prix Charles Lagrange *1961 — Prix Jules Janssen *1971 — Prix des Trois Physiciens *1991 — Grand Cross of the

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

*Grand Croix of the

Ordre du Mérite A suite, in Western classical music and jazz, is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral/ concert band pieces. It originated in the late 14th century as a pairing of dance tunes and grew in scope to comprise up to five dances, sometimes with ...

*Officer of the

Ordre du Mérite Saharien The Ordre du Mérite Saharien (Order of Saharan Merit) was established in 1958 as a reward for social, scientific, economic or administrative services rendered by French or foreign persons who participated in the development of Saharan regions. T ...

References

1904 births 1999 deaths Nicolas Bourbaki French geophysicists Members of the French Academy of Sciences Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur 20th-century French mathematicians Presidents of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics {{France-scientist-stub