Don Wilhelms
Don Wilhelms | |
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| Born | Don Edward Wilhelms July 5, 1930 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Died | September 4, 2026 (aged 96) Palo Alto, California, U.S. |
| Education | Pomona College |
| Awards | G.K. Gilbert Award (1988) Shoemaker Distinguished Lunar Scientist Award |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | geology |
| Workplaces | United States Geological Survey |
Don Edward Wilhelms (July 5, 1930 – September 4, 2026) was an American United States Geological Survey geologist who contributed to geologic mapping of the Earth's Moon and to the geologic training of the Apollo astronauts.
Life and career
[edit]Wilhelms was born July 5, 1930. He was a United States Geological Survey geologist who contributed to geologic mapping of the Earth's Moon and to the geologic training of the Apollo astronauts.[1] He has also contributed to the study of Mars (including Mariner 9), Mercury, and Ganymede.
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He was the author of To a Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of Lunar Exploration (1993),[2] The geologic history of the Moon (1987),[3] and he co-authored the Geologic Map of the Near Side of the Moon (1971) with John F. McCauley.[4] Wilhelms also contributed to Apollo Over the Moon: A View from Orbit (NASA SP-362).[5]
Wilhelms was the recipient of the G. K. Gilbert Award in 1988. He received the Shoemaker Distinguished Lunar Scientist Award in 2010 at the Ames Research Center.[6]
The mineral Donwilhelmsite (CaAl4Si2O11) is named after Wilhelms.[7] The fact that this mineral is formed only at high shock pressure such as that created by impacts is appropriate given the focus of Wilhelms' studies.
Minor planet 4826 Wilhelms is named in his honor.[8]
Wilhelms died at the Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, California, on September 4, 2026, at the age of 96.[9]
References
[edit]- ↑ "Don Wilhelms". May 6, 2015.
- ↑ To a Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of Lunar Exploration. Don E. Wilhelms, University of Arizona Press (1993). ISBN 978-0816510658
- ↑ The geologic history of the Moon, 1987, Wilhelms, Don E.; with sections by McCauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. USGS Professional Paper: 1348. (online)
- ↑ Geologic Map of the Near Side of the Moon, USGS I-703, Don E. Wilhelms and John F. McCauley, 1971 (L&PI web version)
- ↑ Apollo Over the Moon: A View from Orbit (online version) (NASA SP-362), 1978
- ↑ "NASA - NASA Honors Lunar Science Trailblazer". Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2013.
- ↑ Donwilhelmsite at mindat.org
- ↑ "(4826) Wilhelms". (4826) Wilhelms In: Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer. 2003. p. 416. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_4725. ISBN 978-3-540-29925-7.
- ↑ "Don Wilhelms, Apollo geology trainer (1930–2026) - collectSPACE: Messages". www.collectspace.com. Retrieved September 6, 2026.
External links
[edit]- Interview with Donald Wilhelms for NOVA series: To the Moon WGBH Educational Foundation, raw footage, 1998
- To A Rocky Moon, 1993, PDF version available from L&PI
- The geologic history of the Moon, 1987, PDF version available from USGS
- Astrogeology Science Center page on Wilhelms
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