Gerard Kuiper
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Gerard Peter Kuiper (/ˈkaɪpə˞/), born Gerrit Pieter Kuiper (/kœypəʁ/) (December 7, 1905 – December 23, 1973) was a Dutch-American astronomer. Born and educated in the Netherlands, he came to the United States in 1933 and became a naturalized citizen in 1937.
Kuiper discovered two moons of planets in the solar system, namely Uranus's moon Miranda and Neptune's moon Nereid. In addition, he discovered carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of Mars and the existence of a methane-laced atmosphere above Saturn's moon Titan in 1944. Kuiper also pioneered airborne infrared observing using a Convair 990 aircraft in the 1960s.
Kuiper spent most of his career at the University of Chicago, but moved to Tucson, Arizona in 1960 to found the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory at the University of Arizona. Kuiper was the laboratory's director until his death.
In 1959, Kuiper won the Henry Norris Russell Lectureship of the American Astronomical Society.
In the 1960s, Kuiper helped identify landing sites on the moon for the Apollo program.
Asteroid 1776 Kuiper and Kuiper crater on the Moon, the Kuiper belt, as well as craters on Mars and Mercury are named after him. The now-decommissioned Kuiper Airborne Observatory was also named after him.
The Kuiper Prize, named in his honor, is the most distinguished award given by the American Astronomical Society Division of Planetary Sciences, an international society of professional planetary scientists. The prize recognizes outstanding contributors to planetary science, and is awarded annually to scientists whose achievements have most advanced our understanding of planetary systems. Winners of this distinguished award include Carl Sagan, James Van Allen, and Eugene Shoemaker.
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