Jean Dufay
Encyclopedia
Jean Claude Barthélemy Dufay (July 18, 1896–November 6, 1967) was a French
astronomer
.
During his career he studied nebulae, interstellar matter, the night sky and cometary physics. In 1925, while working in collaboration with Jean Cabannes
, he computed the altitude of the Earth's ozone layer
. He was named the honorary director of the Lyon and Haute-Provence observatories.
He became a member of the French Academy of Sciences
in 1963.
The crater Dufay
on the Moon
is named after him.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
astronomer
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...
.
During his career he studied nebulae, interstellar matter, the night sky and cometary physics. In 1925, while working in collaboration with Jean Cabannes
Jean Cabannes
Jean Cabannes was a French physicist specialising in optics.From 1910 to 1914 Cabannes worked in the laboratory of Charles Fabry in Marseille on the topic launched by Lord Rayleigh at the end of the 19th century of how gas molecules diffused light. In 1914 he showed that pure gases could scatter...
, he computed the altitude of the Earth's ozone layer
Ozone layer
The ozone layer is a layer in Earth's atmosphere which contains relatively high concentrations of ozone . This layer absorbs 97–99% of the Sun's high frequency ultraviolet light, which is potentially damaging to the life forms on Earth...
. He was named the honorary director of the Lyon and Haute-Provence observatories.
He became a member of the French Academy of Sciences
French Academy of Sciences
The French Academy of Sciences is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French scientific research...
in 1963.
The crater Dufay
Dufay (crater)
Dufay is a lunar crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies about one crater diameter to the east of the large walled plain Mandel'shtam.To the northwest is the crater Papaleksi and to the east is Valier....
on the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
is named after him.