Brian G. Marsden
Encyclopedia
Brian Geoffrey Marsden (5 August 1937 Cambridge, England – 18 November 2010 Burlington, Massachusetts, US) was a British astronomer
born in Cambridge, England, and educated at The Perse School
in Cambridge
, New College, Oxford
and Yale University
. Dr. Marsden was the longtime director of the Minor Planet Center
(MPC) at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
(director emeritus from 2006 to 2010).
and astrometry
, collecting data on the positions of asteroid
s and comet
s and computing their orbits, often from minimal observational information and providing their future positions on International Astronomical Union
(IAU) circulars. In addition to serving as MPC director since 1978, he served as the director of the Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
(CBAT) from 1968 to 1999. He was president of Commission 6, and Commission 20 of the IAU.
Marsden helped recover once lost asteroids and lost comet
s. Some asteroid and comet discoveries of previous decades were "lost" because not enough observational data had been obtained at the time to determine a reliable enough orbit to know where to look for re-observation at future dates. Occasionally, a newly discovered object turns out to be a rediscovery of a previously lost object, which can be determined by calculating its orbit backwards into the past and matching calculated positions with the previously recorded positions of the lost object. In the case of comets this is especially tricky because of nongravitational forces that can affect their orbits (one of which is emission of jets of gas from the comet nucleus), but Marsden has specialized in calculating such nongravitational forces. Notably, he successfully predicted the 1992 return of the once-lost Comet Swift-Tuttle.
In 1998, he calculated that an asteroid, (35396) 1997 XF11
might strike the Earth in 2028.
Marsden chose to issue a press release, which Robert Roy Britt called a false alarm
.
Other asteroid researchers called it a "mistake" and Marsden himself admitted the announcement was a strategy which needed "rethinking", and NASA
asked astronomers not to sound a public alarm like that again but to communicate with each other.
He took some criticism for publicizing this prediction right when movie companies were publicizing films like "Deep Impact
" (see also Science by press conference
). However, Marsden justified his actions with the argument that the problem of detecting asteroids needs more attention:
Follow-up work determined that an impact would be unlikely.
He once proposed that Pluto
should be cross-listed as both a planet
and a minor planet
and assigned the asteroid number 10000; however, this proposal was not accepted. A similar proposal was, however, finally accepted in 2006 when Pluto was designated minor planet 134340 and also declared a dwarf planet
.
Named after him
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
born in Cambridge, England, and educated at The Perse School
The Perse School
The Perse Upper School is an independent secondary co-educational day school in Cambridge, England. The school was founded in 1615 by Dr Stephen Perse, a Fellow of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, and has existed on several different sites in the city before its present home on Hills...
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
and Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. Dr. Marsden was the longtime director of the Minor Planet Center
Minor Planet Center
The Minor Planet Center operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory , which is part of the Center for Astrophysics along with the Harvard College Observatory ....
(MPC) at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
The Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical institutions in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth and space sciences, and science education...
(director emeritus from 2006 to 2010).
Life
Marsden specialized in celestial mechanicsCelestial mechanics
Celestial mechanics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the motions of celestial objects. The field applies principles of physics, historically classical mechanics, to astronomical objects such as stars and planets to produce ephemeris data. Orbital mechanics is a subfield which focuses on...
and astrometry
Astrometry
Astrometry is the branch of astronomy that involves precise measurements of the positions and movements of stars and other celestial bodies. The information obtained by astrometric measurements provides information on the kinematics and physical origin of our Solar System and our Galaxy, the Milky...
, collecting data on the positions of asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
s and comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
s and computing their orbits, often from minimal observational information and providing their future positions on International Astronomical Union
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
(IAU) circulars. In addition to serving as MPC director since 1978, he served as the director of the Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
The Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams is the official international clearing house for information relating to transient astronomical events....
(CBAT) from 1968 to 1999. He was president of Commission 6, and Commission 20 of the IAU.
Marsden helped recover once lost asteroids and lost comet
Lost comet
A lost comet is a previously discovered comet that has been missed at its most recent perihelion passage, generally because there is not enough data to reliably calculate the comet's orbit and predict its location....
s. Some asteroid and comet discoveries of previous decades were "lost" because not enough observational data had been obtained at the time to determine a reliable enough orbit to know where to look for re-observation at future dates. Occasionally, a newly discovered object turns out to be a rediscovery of a previously lost object, which can be determined by calculating its orbit backwards into the past and matching calculated positions with the previously recorded positions of the lost object. In the case of comets this is especially tricky because of nongravitational forces that can affect their orbits (one of which is emission of jets of gas from the comet nucleus), but Marsden has specialized in calculating such nongravitational forces. Notably, he successfully predicted the 1992 return of the once-lost Comet Swift-Tuttle.
In 1998, he calculated that an asteroid, (35396) 1997 XF11
(35396) 1997 XF11
' is a near-Earth and Mars-crosser asteroid which, shortly after its discovery on December 6, 1997, by James V. Scotti of the University of Arizona's Spacewatch Project, was predicted to make an exceptionally close approach to Earth in October 2028...
might strike the Earth in 2028.
Marsden chose to issue a press release, which Robert Roy Britt called a false alarm
False alarm
A false alarm, also called a nuisance alarm, is the fake report of an emergency, causing unnecessary panic and/or bringing resources to a place where they are not needed. Over time, repeated false alarms in a certain area may cause occupants to start to ignore all alarms, knowing that each time it...
.
- "... astronomers created a media stormScience by press conferenceThe term science by press conference is a phrase referring to scientists who put an unusual focus on publicizing results of research in the media. The term is usually used disparagingly...
by announcing that an asteroid could collide with Earth in 2028, only to revise the estimates hours later." --Gretchen Vogel, Science, 20 March 1998
Other asteroid researchers called it a "mistake" and Marsden himself admitted the announcement was a strategy which needed "rethinking", and NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
asked astronomers not to sound a public alarm like that again but to communicate with each other.
He took some criticism for publicizing this prediction right when movie companies were publicizing films like "Deep Impact
Deep Impact (film)
Deep Impact is a 1998 science-fiction disaster-drama film released by Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks in the United States on May 8, 1998. The film was directed by Mimi Leder and stars Robert Duvall, Elijah Wood, Téa Leoni, and Morgan Freeman...
" (see also Science by press conference
Science by press conference
The term science by press conference is a phrase referring to scientists who put an unusual focus on publicizing results of research in the media. The term is usually used disparagingly...
). However, Marsden justified his actions with the argument that the problem of detecting asteroids needs more attention:
- "Much as the incident was bad for my reputation, we needed a scare like that to bring attention to this problem." (Scientific American magazine, 2003)
Follow-up work determined that an impact would be unlikely.
He once proposed that Pluto
Pluto
Pluto, formal designation 134340 Pluto, is the second-most-massive known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the tenth-most-massive body observed directly orbiting the Sun...
should be cross-listed as both a planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
and a minor planet
Minor planet
An asteroid group or minor-planet group is a population of minor planets that have a share broadly similar orbits. Members are generally unrelated to each other, unlike in an asteroid family, which often results from the break-up of a single asteroid...
and assigned the asteroid number 10000; however, this proposal was not accepted. A similar proposal was, however, finally accepted in 2006 when Pluto was designated minor planet 134340 and also declared a dwarf planet
Dwarf planet
A dwarf planet, as defined by the International Astronomical Union , is a celestial body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be spherical as a result of its own gravity but has not cleared its neighboring region of planetesimals and is not a satellite...
.
- Marsden won enmity with a segment of the public as a leader of the campaign to downgrade Pluto. Partly at his urging, the International Astronomical Union voted at a meeting in Prague in 2006 to designate Pluto and three asteroids “dwarf planets.”
| 37556 Svyaztie 37556 Svyaztie 37556 Svyaztie is a main-belt asteroid discovered on August 28, 1982 by Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh and Brian G. Marsden at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory.... |
August 28, 1982 | with N. S. Chernykh Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh Nikolay Stepanovich Chernykh was a Soviet and Russian astronomer.Chernykh was born in the city of Usman' in Voronezh Oblast... |
Honours
Awards- Merlin Medal and Gift of the British Astronomical AssociationBritish Astronomical AssociationThe British Astronomical Association is the senior national association of amateur astronomers in the UK.-Function:It encourages observational astronomy by non-professionals in areas which cannot be covered by professional observatories...
(1965) - Walter Goodacre Medal of the British Astronomical AssociationBritish Astronomical AssociationThe British Astronomical Association is the senior national association of amateur astronomers in the UK.-Function:It encourages observational astronomy by non-professionals in areas which cannot be covered by professional observatories...
(1979) - George Van Biesbroeck PrizeGeorge Van Biesbroeck PrizeThe George Van Biesbroeck Prize is an award for long-term achievements in the field of astronomy. According to the American Astronomical Society awards website; "The Van Biesbroeck prize is normally awarded every two years and honors a living individual for long-term extraordinary or unselfish...
of the American Astronomical SocietyAmerican Astronomical SocietyThe American Astronomical Society is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC...
(1989) - Brouwer AwardBrouwer Award (Division on Dynamical Astronomy)The Dirk Brouwer Award, usually known as the Brouwer Award, is awarded annually by the Division on Dynamical Astronomy of the American Astronomical Society for outstanding lifetime achievement in the field of dynamical astronomy...
of the Division on Dynamical AstronomyDivision on Dynamical AstronomyThe Division on Dynamical Astronomy is a branch of the American Astronomical Society that focuses on the advancement of all aspects of dynamical astronomy, including celestial mechanics, solar system dynamics, stellar dynamics, as well as the dynamics of the interstellar medium and galactic...
of the American Astronomical Society (1995) - Royal Astronomical SocietyRoyal Astronomical SocietyThe Royal Astronomical Society is a learned society that began as the Astronomical Society of London in 1820 to support astronomical research . It became the Royal Astronomical Society in 1831 on receiving its Royal Charter from William IV...
Award for Service to Astronomy and Geophysics (2006) - Member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and LettersNorwegian Academy of Science and LettersThe Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway.-History:The University of Oslo was established in 1811. The idea of a learned society in Christiania surfaced for the first time in 1841. The city of Throndhjem had no university, but had a learned...
.
Named after him
- AsteroidAsteroidAsteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
1877 Marsden1877 Marsden1877 Marsden is an outer main-belt asteroid discovered on March 24, 1971 by C. J. Van Houten at Palomar.- External links :*... - Marsden Group of sun-grazing comets
External links
- "Man in the News; A Cheery Herald of Fear: Brian Geoffrey Marsden" in The New York Times (13 March 1998)
- "1997 XF11 – the true story" in The Journal of the British Astronomical Association Vol. 109, No.1 (February 1999)
- The Great Asteroid Scare - Marsden's announcement about XF11 made front page headlines
- Obituary of Brian Marsden, The Daily Telegraph, 6 December, 2010