death_place death_date work_institution birth_place birth_date article_title name alma_mater
pullman , wa november 5 , 2007 at age 80 ncar athens , ga october 18 , 1927 john w. firor
 john w. firor phd . university of chicago
john w. firor

john w. firor -lrb- october 18 , 1927 -- november 5 , 2007 -rrb- was an american physicist .
he was director of the high altitude observatory -lrb- hao -rrb- from 1961 to 1968 , and director of the national center for atmospheric research -lrb- ncar -rrb- from 1968 to 1974 .
firor was born in athens , georgia on october 18 , 1927 , where his father was a professor of agricultural economics .
his interest in physics and astrophysics began while serving in the army , during which time he was assigned to the los alamos national laboratory .
after his service , he returned to college and graduated in physics from georgia tech in 1949 .
he received his ph.d. in physics from the university of chicago in 1954 , writing his thesis on cosmic rays under john simpson .
he moved from cosmic rays to radio astronomy -lrb- particularly of the sun -rrb- when he began work at the carnegie institution of washington 's department of terrestrial magnetism .
he was married twice , to merle jenkins firor -lrb- who died in 1979 -rrb- and judith jacobsen -lrb- who died in 2004 -rrb- .
he had four children by his first wife : daniel , kay , james , and susan .
firor died on november 5 , 2007 , after a long battle with altzheimer 's disease .
firor left the carnegie institution of washington in 1961 to become director of the high altitude observatory -lrb- hao -rrb- , a position he occupied until 1968 .
whilst hao director , firor led the development of the new solar physics division -lrb- spd -rrb- of the american astronomical society -lrb- aas -rrb- , and became the spd 's founding chair .
in 1968 , he became the director of the national center for atmospheric research -lrb- ncar -rrb- , of which hao was a scientific division .
he served as ncar director until 1974 , when francis bretherton became director .
from 1974 to 1980 , firor served as executive director of ncar , after which he became director of ncar 's advanced study program up to his retirement in 1996 .
firor wrote many papers on cosmic rays , radio sources in the universe , the sun 's atmosphere , and solar flares .
he also participated in hao expeditions to observe solar eclipses in new guinea , brazil , and kenya .
later in his career , firor took a keen interest in the intersection of science and society , and he became one of the earliest and most eloquent spokespeople on the dangers of human-induced climate change , testifying before congressional committees and addressing a broad variety of audiences .
his book , `` our changing atmosphere '' -lrb- 1990 -rrb- , received the louis j. battan award from the american meteorological society .
firor and his second wife , judith jacobsen , co-authored `` the crowded greenhouse '' -lrb- 2002 -rrb- , on the links between climate change and population growth .
