Jacques Maurice Beckers (14 February 1934 – 26 February 2021) was a Dutch-born American astronomer. He was director of the National Solar Observatory between 1993 and 1998. Beckers worked mainly in the field of astrophysics and astronomical optometry.

Career

Beckers was born on 14 February 1934, in

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both ban ...

. He studied at

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...

, where he obtained a PhD under

Marcel Minnaert Marcel Gilles Jozef Minnaert (12 February 1893 – 26 October 1970) was a Dutch astronomer of Belgian origin. He was born in Bruges and died in Utrecht. He is notable for his contributions to astronomy and physics and for a popular book on me ...

in 1964. Beckers then moved to the United States, where he obtained American nationality in 1968. He was director of the

Multiple Mirror Telescope The MMT Observatory (MMTO) is an astronomical observatory on the site of Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory (IAU observatory code 696). The Whipple observatory complex is located on Mount Hopkins, Arizona, US (55 km south of Tucson) in the S ...

at Mount Hopkins in Arizona from 1979 to 1984. Afterwards Beckers served as head of the National New Technology Telescope (NNTT) project. Although initially enthusiastic Beckers became frustrated when the director of the

National Optical Astronomy Observatory The National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) was the United States national observatory for ground-based nighttime ultraviolet- optical-infrared (OUVIR) astronomy. The National Science Foundation (NSF) funded NOAO to provide forefront astrono ...

limited the scope of his project. In 1988 he started as research leader of the Interferometry Group at the

Very Large Telescope The Very Large Telescope (VLT) is a telescope facility operated by the European Southern Observatory on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. It consists of four individual telescopes, each with a primary mirror 8.2 m acro ...

of the

European Southern Observatory The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere, commonly referred to as the European Southern Observatory (ESO), is an intergovernmental research organisation made up of 16 member states for ground-based ast ...

in Chile. In 1993 Beckers moved back to the United States to become director of the National Solar Observatory, which he was between 1993 and 1998. He worked a further three years as researcher at the observatory. In 2001 Beckers started as scientist at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

. As a researcher Beckers worked mainly in the field of

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline said, Astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the nature of the h ...

and astronomical instrumentation in the field of optometry.

Awards and honors

Beckers was awarded the

Arctowski Medal The Arctowski Medal is awarded by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences "for studies in solar physics and solar-terrestrial relationships." Named in honor of Henryk Arctowski, it was first awarded in 1969. List of Arctowski Medal winners SourceN ...

by the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nat ...

of the United States in 1975. In 1988 he became a foreign member of the

Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters ( no, Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway. History The Royal Frederick Unive ...

. Beckers was elected a corresponding member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...

in 1989. In 2004

Lund University , motto = Ad utrumque , mottoeng = Prepared for both , established = , type = Public research university , budget = SEK 9 billion honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad h ...

. One year later he was made a Knight in the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...

References

External links

Profile
at

Mathematics Genealogy Project The Mathematics Genealogy Project (MGP) is a web-based database for the academic genealogy of mathematicians.. By 31 December 2021, it contained information on 274,575 mathematical scientists who contributed to research-level mathematics. For a ty ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beckers, Jacques 1934 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Dutch astronomers American astrophysicists Dutch astrophysicists Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion People from Arnhem Utrecht University alumni 21st-century American astronomers Dutch emigrants to the United States