Donald Gurnett
Legendary Iowa space physicist Donald Gurnett dies
“Donald Gurnett, a pioneering space scientist whose career as a student, teacher, and researcher at the University of Iowa spanned more than 60 years, died on Thursday, Jan. 13, 2022. He was 81. When he retired in May 2019, Gurnett pointed to a litany of accomplishments that few–if any–will be able to match: He earned his undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral degrees from Iowa, just when space exploration began; he is considered by many the founder of the field of space plasma wave physics; his discoveries include solving how auroras are created, the first detailed measure of radio emissions from the outer planets, and informing humankind of the first spacecraft to leave the solar system and reach the realm among the stars.”