Delbert Harold McNamara, Ph.D. (June 28, 1923 - January 9, 2014) was an American astronomer at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

and an internationally recognized authority in intrinsic variable and eclipsing binary stars."1967 Faculty Lecturer Chosen", ''Daily Universe'', Brigham Young University, 8 March 1967 McNamara received his Ph.D. from the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

in 1950. His dissertation was entitled "A Two Color Photometric Study of the Eclipsing Variable, YZ Cassiopeia". Following his Ph.D. he spent five years teaching and researching with the renown Professor

Otto Struve Otto Lyudvigovich Struve (; 12 August 1897 – 6 April 1963) was a Russian-American astronomer of Baltic German origin. Otto was the descendant of famous astronomers of the Struve family; he was the son of Ludwig Struve, grandson of Otto Wilhel ...

. In 1955, he joined

as the first faculty member whose training was primarily in the field of astronomy. He then inaugurated the graduate program in astrophysics at BYU in 1957. He authored or co-authored more than 100 publications and has presented in different countries around the world.Academic Author D.H. McNamara
Retrieved on 28 June 2013.
. Retrieved on 28 June 2013. McNamara was a recipient of the

Lick Observatory The Lick Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by the University of California. It is on the summit of Mount Hamilton (California), Mount Hamilton, in the Diablo Range just east of San Jose, California, United States. The ...

Fellowship while a graduate student at Berkeley. He was a guest investigator at the

McDonald Observatory McDonald Observatory is an astronomical observatory located near unincorporated community of Fort Davis in Jeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The facility is located on Mount Locke in the Davis Mountains of West Texas, with additional faci ...

in Texas, guest investigator at the Mount Wilson and Mount Palomar Observatories in California, guest investigator at the

Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) is an Astronomy, astronomical observatory located on the summit of Mt. Cerro Tololo in the Coquimbo Region of northern Chile, with additional facilities located on Mt. Cerro Pachón about to th ...

in Chile and principal scientist at the

Space Sciences Laboratory The Space Sciences Laboratory (SSL) is an Organized Research Unit (ORU) of the University of California, Berkeley. Founded in 1959, the laboratory is located in the Berkeley Hills above the university campus. It has developed and continues to ...

in California."Astronomers study in Chile", ''Daily Universe'', Brigham Young University, 2 April 1976"Astronomy professor has stars in his eyes", ''Daily Universe'', Brigham Young University, 1 November 1978 From 1968 to 1991, McNamara was editor of the

Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific ''Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific'' (often abbreviated as ''PASP'' in references and literature) is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal managed by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. It publishes research and r ...

. In 1987 he founded th
Conference Series
which has grown to become one of the community's leading publishers of conference proceedings. McNamara was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific from 1968 to 1969. In 2000 McNamara received the

George Van Biesbroeck Prize The George Van Biesbroeck Prize is an award for long-term achievements in the field of astronomy. According to the American Astronomical Society awards website; "The Van Biesbroeck prize is normally awarded every two years and honors a living indi ...

by the American Astronomical Society for "long-term extraordinary or unselfish service to astronomy". He was honored in 2010 with the Distinguished Service Award by the Utah Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. Other rewards and recognition include the Karl G. Maeser Research Award in 1966, the Fourth Distinguished Annual Faculty Lecture from Brigham Young University in 1967 and the Wesley P. Lloyd Memorial Award in 1982-83. McNamara served in the United States Navy during World War II (1943–1946) and retired as a Lieutenant JG. McNamara was a member of the

American Astronomical Society The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...

Astronomical Society of the Pacific The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) is an American scientific and educational organization, founded in San Francisco on February 7, 1889, immediately following the solar eclipse of January 1, 1889. Its name derives from its origins on ...

, the

International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; , UAI) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach, education, and developmen ...

and

Sigma Xi Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society () is an international non-profit honor society for scientists and engineers. Sigma Xi was founded at Cornell University by a faculty member and graduate students in 1886 and is one of the oldest ...

.IAU Membership D.H. McNamara
Retrieved on 28 June 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McNamara, Delbert Harold 1923 births American astronomers University of California, Berkeley alumni 2014 deaths Brigham Young University faculty United States Navy personnel of World War II