Alexander Dalgarno. 5 January 1928—9 April 2015

Abstract

Alexander (Alex) Dalgarno greatly advanced the quantitative study of fundamental atomic and molecular processes, contributed significantly to atmospheric science and ‘established molecular astrophysics as a unified intellectual field of great scientific endeavour, impact and achievement’ ( Flannery 2010 ). Alex developed and applied techniques that simplify calculations and lead to reliable solutions, enabling him to make landmark contributions to the knowledge of collisionally induced charge transfer, rotational and vibrational excitation of molecules, spin exchange and ultracold chemistry. His wide-ranging curiosity, disciplined steps to broaden his programme and ability to identify dominant physical processes and calculate their rates led to his many important contributions to atmospheric science. For example, Alex greatly expanded the knowledge of terrestrial airglow features, photoabsorption and collisional processes in the terrestrial ozone layer and deposition by energetic electrons in the atmospheres of other planets. In molecular astrophysics, he applied that same systematic approach to studies of a range of environments from the early Universe to present-day UV-irradiated interstellar clouds, shocks and supernova ejecta. Alex made availability to students a priority and encouraged them to pursue problems that they devised, despite his seemingly inexhaustible supply of suitable projects. His community service included his 29-year long editorship of Astrophysical Journal Letters , starting in 1973, and the founding of the Institute of Theoretical Atomic and Molecular Physics at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, in 1988, owing to his concerns for the health of the fields of theoretical atomic and molecular physics and fundamental quantum mechanics, which the Institute did much to reinvigorate.