Physicist Hans A. Bethe, whose description of the nuclear processes powering the sun earned him a Nobel Prize in physics in 1967, has been at Cornell for 61 years. Above, during a recess at a 1936 nuclear physics symposium on campus in Rockefeller A, now Schwartz Auditorium, he joins physicists at the front of the hall. In the foreground Bethe, newly arrived at Cornell, left, is leaning on the table. To his left is Franco Rassetti, who is talking to Enrico Fermi (Nobel Prize, 1938), second from right. Facing the camera, far right, but blurred, is believed to be Emilio Segré (Nobel Prize, 1959). The man with his back to the camera is unidentified. Photo courtesy of Paul Hartman
Hans A. Bethe, Cornell professor emeritus of physics, was honored by friends and colleagues and by the American Physical Society (APS) during a reception July 2 on the occasion of his 90th birthday.
During the reception in Room 700 of Clark Hall, a new APS award named for Bethe was announced. The APS is honoring Bethe for his "outstanding and numerous accomplishments in both astrophysics and nuclear physics," said Judy Franz, APS executive officer, who made the announcement in the Clark Hall room also named in Bethe's honor. Franz, a Cornell alumna and now a physicist at the University of Alabama-Huntsville, also presented Bethe with a birthday card from the APS along with a certificate.
"I'm very happy to accept this honor of having this prize named after me," Bethe said, as his family joined Cornell scientists and administrators at the reception. He went on to say that he would like a recipient of the prize in astrophysics to be someone who studies stars, because, "I love stars, from birth to final explosion."
The Hans Bethe Prize, a cash award of $7,500, is to be awarded annually, beginning in 1998, for outstanding work in theory, experiment or observation in the areas of astrophysics, nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics or closely related fields. The intention is to recognize outstanding achievements in one of these areas by a scientist worldwide, according to the APS. The prize is endowed by donations from members of the Division of Nuclear Physics, the Division of Astrophysics and friends of Bethe. Cornell University and Los Alamos National Laboratory have made major contributions to the endowment.
At a reception in Clark Hall on July 2 of this year in honor of his birthday, Bethe, professor emeritus of physics, poses with, from left, his son, Henry; his wife, Rosa; and his grandson, Paul. Adriana Rovers/University Photography