Sylwester Kaliski (19 December 1925 – 16 September 1978) was a Polish engineer, professor and military general. He was a member of the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences (, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society of distinguished scholars a ...

(PAN). Born in

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

, Kaliski was a specialist in the field of

applied physics Applied physics is the application of physics to solve scientific or engineering problems. It is usually considered a bridge or a connection between physics and engineering. "Applied" is distinguished from "pure" by a subtle combination of fac ...

. He developed the theory of continuous amplification of ultra and hyper-sounds in

semiconductive crystals A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. Its conductivity can be modified by adding impurities (" doping") to its crystal structure. When two regions with different doping levels ...

and obtained plasma temperature of tens of millions of kelvins using

laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...

impulse. He died in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

in car crash. It has been speculated that Kaliski was killed by the Soviet

KGB The Committee for State Security (, ), abbreviated as KGB (, ; ) was the main security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991. It was the direct successor of preceding Soviet secret police agencies including the Cheka, Joint State Polit ...

, as he headed the Polish clandestine program of developing thermonuclear devices intended for military use. The program began on orders from the highest levels of Polish communists and was reportedly opposed by the Soviet Union. He was honored with an entry in the "Honorary Book of Soldierly Deeds" in 1973.

Awards and decorations

Order of the Builders of People's Poland Order of the Builders of People's Poland () was the highestORDER BUDOWNICZYCH POLSKI LUDOWEJ ...

(posthumously, 1978) * POL Order Sztandaru Pracy 1 klasy BAR

Order of the Banner of Labour The Order of the Banner of Labour () was a governmental award in Poland during the 20th-century era of the Polish People's Republic, a former Marxist-Leninist state. The order was established by the Sejm (a chamber of the Polish parliament) on 2 ...

, 1st Class (1968) * POL Polonia Restituta Komandorski BAR

Commander's Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

(1973) *

Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (1961) * Gold Cross of Merit (1957) * POL Medal 30-lecia Polski Ludowej BAR

Medal of the 30th Anniversary of People's Poland The Medal of the 30th Anniversary of People's Poland (Polish: ''Medal 30-lecia Polski Ludowej'') is a former civil decoration of Poland established by the Council of State on 7 February 1974 to recognize contribution of working people in developmen ...

(1974) * Gold

Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Fatherland The Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Fatherland () is a Orders, decorations, and medals of Poland, Polish military decoration, awarded for long service and excellent work in Polish Armed Forces, the army. The medal was first establis ...

(1970) * Silver Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Fatherland * Bronze Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Fatherland * Gold

Medal of Merit for National Defence The Medal of Merit for National Defence () is a military decoration, decoration of the Ministry of National Defence (Poland), Ministry of National Defence of Poland. Established 21 April 1966 and revised in 1991, the medal recognizes meritorious s ...

(1974) * Silver Medal of Merit for National Defence * Bronze Medal of Merit for National Defence * Order of Military Merit with Great Star (Yugoslavia, 1967) * PRT Order of Prince Henry - Grand Officer BAR

PRT Order of Prince Henry - Grand Officer BAR

Grand Officer of the

Order of Prince Henry The Order of Prince Henry () is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese ''infante'' Prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of the Age of Discovery. M ...

(Portugal, 1976) * Order friendship of peoples rib

Order of Friendship of Peoples The Order of Friendship of Peoples () was an order of the Soviet Union, and was awarded to persons (including non-citizens), organizations, enterprises, military units, as well as administrative subdivisions of the USSR for accomplishments in s ...

(Soviet Union, 1973)

References

1925 births 1978 deaths People from Toruń People from Pomeranian Voivodeship (1919–1939) Members of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party Government ministers of Poland Members of the Polish Sejm 1972–1976 Members of the Polish Sejm 1976–1980 Polish People's Army generals Nuclear engineers 20th-century Polish engineers 20th-century Polish physicists Gdańsk University of Technology alumni Members of the Polish Academy of Sciences Recipients of the Order of the Builders of People's Poland Recipients of the Order of the Banner of Work Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Knights of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples {{Poland-mil-bio-stub