Richard Tousey


Richard Tousey was an American astronomer. He was a pioneer in the observation of the sun from space and took the first photographs of the sun's ultraviolet spectrum.

Early life and education

Richard Tousey was born on May 18, 1908, in Somerville, Massachusetts, to Coleman and Adella Hill Tousey. He received a bachelor's degree from Tufts University, then MA and Ph.D. in physics from Harvard University. His dissertation related to measuring optical properties of fluorite at 1216 angstroms was completed under Theodore Lyman.

Career and research

Tousey taught and conducted research at Harvard from 1933 to 1936, then Tufts until 1941. Upon invitation by E.O. Hulburt, Tousey joined the Naval Research Laboratory where his initial work focused on night vision. Using captured V-2 rockets made available for research at White Sands Missile Range, he was able to measure the first ultraviolet spectrum of the sun.

Personal life

He married Ruth Lowe in 1932 and together they had one daughter, Joanna. The family shared an interest in music and collected musical instruments. Tousey died of pneumonia on April 15, 1997, at Prince Georges Hospital Center in Maryland.

Honors