François Wesemael

François Wesemael (20 January 1954 in Vietnam - 28 September 2011 in Montreal, Quebec)[1] was a Canadian astrophysicist who specialised in modeling stellar atmospheres.[2]

François Wesemael
Born1954
Died2011
Known forStellar atmospheres
AwardsRutherford Memorial Medal, Canadian Association of Physicists Herzberg Medal
Scientific career
InstitutionsUniversity of Montreal
ThesisAtmospheres for Hot, High-Gravity Pure Helium Stars (1979)
Doctoral advisorHugh M. Van Horn and Malcolm P. Savedoff

He was widely recognized for his talents in communication and outreach, and a supervisor of student projects.[3]

Early life and education

François Wesemael was born in Vietnam, moving with his family to France, Luxemburg and then Canada during his childhood. He received a bachelor's degree from the Université de Montréal in 1974.[2]

Wesemael completed a PhD under the supervision of Hugh M. Van Horn and Malcolm P. Savedoff at the University of Rochester. During this time, he constructed models for white dwarfs with both hydrogen and helium atmospheres.[4][5]

Career

After receiving his PhD in 1979, he became a professor at the Department of Physics at the Université de Montréal. He remained there for the rest of his career.[2]

Specializing in the modeling of stellar atmospheres, his principal contributions focused on the photospheres of subdwarf and white dwarf stars, the spectral evolution of white dwarfs and the astroseismology of stellar remnants. He was a member of the white dwarf asteroseismology group at Université de Montréal, along with his colleague Gilles Fontaine. This research group received internationally acclaim for its wide ranging contributions to our understanding of white dwarfs.[2][3]

From the mid-2000s, Wesemael began to increasingly focus his work on the history of science, including the development of astronomy and astrophysics in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the development and sharing of knowledge in the seventeenth century.[6]

Awards

References
  1. "Hommage à François Wesemael (1954–2011) | Monique C. Cormier". moniquecormier.ca. Retrieved 2019-11-04.
  2. Van Horn, H. M. (Hugh Moody), 1938- (2014-11-14). Unlocking the secrets of white dwarf stars. Cham. ISBN 9783319093697. OCLC 899576397.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. "Université de Montréal - Forum - Édition du 27 octobre 2003 / volume 38, numéro 9 - Prix d'excellence en enseignement". www.iforum.umontreal.ca. Retrieved 2019-11-04.
  4. Wesemael, F.; van Horn, H. M.; Savedoff, M. P.; Auer, L. H. (June 1980). "Atmospheres for hot, high-gravity stars. I - Pure hydrogen models". The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. 43: 159. Bibcode:1980ApJS...43..159W. doi:10.1086/190668. ISSN 0067-0049.
  5. Wesemael, F. (1979). "Atmospheres for Hot, High-Gravity Pure Helium Stars". Ph.D. Thesis. Bibcode:1979PhDT.........7W.
  6. "Bulletin Interaction, Automne 2012, numéro 20" (PDF). Département de physique, Université de Montréal.
  7. "Past Award Winners | The Royal Society of Canada". rsc-src.ca. Retrieved 2019-11-04.
  8. "CAP Herzberg Medal - Current and Previous Winners". Canadian Association of Physicists. Retrieved 2019-11-04.
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