| Content: | | Author: F. Lemoine et al.
Dear colleagues.
It is with profound sadness that we must announce to you the passing our
colleague, Dr. Richard Biancale, geodesist, recently retired from the
CNES in September 2018, and most recently working at the GFZ
(Oberpfaffenhofen) with Dr. Frank Flechtner on GRACE Follow-On. We were
informed of his death on Monday February 4, 2019 from a heart attack
while skiing in the Alps.
Richard had a long and distinguished career in Space Geodesy. He
received his Ph.D. in 1978 from the University Pierre and Marie Curie in
Paris (France) while working under Professor Christoph Reigber at the
Technical University of Munich (Germany). He worked as a research
scientist at the University of Sao Paulo, at the DGFI (/Deutsches
Geod//tisches Forschungsinstitut/) in Munich (Germany), and at CERGA
(/Centre d´Etudes et de Recherches en Godynamique et Astronomtrie/),
Grasse (France), before joining the French Space Agency, the CNES
(Toulouse, France) in 1982 as a scientific engineer.
Under the direction of Michel Lefebvre, one of his first jobs at the
CNES was to define the DORIS tracking system for the TOPEX/Poseidon
mission. Since 1984 he was very involved in the French-German
cooperation on gravity field modeling, first with the GRIM models, and
then with the EIGEN models after the launches of CHAMP and GRACE. He
served as the scientific manager of the Stella laser geodetic satellite,
launched in 1993.Under the direction of Dr. Georges Balmino, he became
chief of the Terrestrial and Planetary Geodetic Department of the CNES
in 1992. He received his Habilitation in 2006 and starting in 2008
served as Executive Director of the Groupe de Recherche de Godsie
Spatiale (GRGS), a French national group that gathers 120 researchers
from organizations involved in Space Geodesy studies.
Over the course of his career he has supervised and inspired more than a
dozen Ph.D students and served as a mentor to many colleagues and young
scientists. Understanding the importance of training the next generation
of scientists in satellite geodesy, he has taught geodesy for over 25
years at engineer schools (e.g. ENSG /[Ecole de la
G//omatique///National School of Geographic Sciences]/, ENSTA /[cole
Nationale Suprieure de Techniques Avances]), /at universities (e.g.
Paris VI), and short training courses (e.g. GRGS Summer School).
Throughout his careerhe has worked assiduously to improve the quality of
geodetic data, and to advance the science obtained from these data. He
was a strong proponent of the need for improving the International
Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF), supporting the contributions to the
IDS, IGS, ILRS, IVS and IERS.He has participated and led national and
international proposals for new innovative space missions that would
continue to advance the contribution of geodesy to science and
society.Most recently, before and after his retirement from CNES, he
worked to advance the proposal for the Tahiti Geodetic Observatory, a
fundamental station including VLBI, SLR, GNSS and DORIS whose geographic
location would be of prime importance to the ITRF and to the mm-level
goals of the Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS) in the next decade.
Asmany of his colleagues noticed, Richard Biancalehad a joie de vivre.
He was charming, free, passionate and cheerful man who embraced life
whether it was in a fine restaurant after a scientific meeting, sailing
around the Mediterranean or across the Atlantic on his catamaran,
RaphyO^2 , or visiting interesting cultural or natural locales.As his
colleagues, we were all privileged to enjoy his friendship. We lament
this tragic loss.
To his family, including wife, Irmtraud, and four children, Raphal,
Philipp, Johannes & Joselyne, we extend our deepest sympathy and most
heartfelt condolences.
Sincerely,
Frank Lemoine
///(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, U.S.A)/
Laurent Soudarin
(Collecte Localisation Satellites, Ramonvile-Saint Agne, FRANCE)
Jean-Michel Lemoine & Pascale Ferrage
/(Centre Nationale dtudes Spatiales, Toulouse, FRANCE)/
Jean-Paul Boy
/(EOST, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, FRANCE)/
style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Author:
F. Lemoine et al.
style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Dear
colleagues.
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>It
is with
profound sadness that we must announce to you the passing our
colleague, Dr.
Richard Biancale, geodesist, recently retired from the CNES in
September 2018,
and most recently working at the GFZ (Oberpfaffenhofen) with Dr.
Frank
Flechtner on GRACE Follow-On. We were informed of his death on
Monday February 4,
2019 from a heart attack while skiing in the Alps.
style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Richard
had a
long and distinguished career in Space Geodesy. He received his
Ph.D. in 1978
from the University Pierre and Marie Curie in Paris (France)
while working
under Professor Christoph Reigber at the Technical University of
Munich
(Germany). He worked as a research scientist at the University
of Sao Paulo, at
the DGFI ( style=”font-size:
11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Deutsches Geod style=”mso-bidi-font-style:
normal”> style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:
DE” lang=”DE”>tisches Forschungsinstitut style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New
Roman";
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>) in
Munich
(Germany), and at CERGA ( style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”>style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Centre
d´Etudes et de Recherches en Godynamique et Astronomtriestyle=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>),
Grasse
(France), before joining the French Space Agency, the CNES
(Toulouse, France)
in 1982 as a scientific engineer.
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Under
the
direction of Mich style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:FR” lang=”FR”>el Lefebvre, style=”font-family:
"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>one of his first
jobs at the CNES
was to define the DORIS tracking system for the TOPEX/Poseidon
mission. Since
1984 he was very involved in the French-German cooperation on
gravity field
modeling, first with the GRIM models, and then with the EIGEN
models after the
launches of CHAMP and GRACE. He served as the scientific manager
of the Stella
laser geodetic satellite, launched in 1993. style=”mso-spacerun:yes”>
Under the direction of Dr. Georges Balmino, he became
chief of the
Terrestrial and Planetary Geodetic Department of the CNES in
1992. He
received his Habilitation in 2006 and starting in 2008 served
as Executive
Director of the Groupe de Recherche de G style=”font-family:
"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:FR”
lang=”FR”>odsie
Spatiale style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>(GRGS),
a French national group that gathers 120 researchers from
organizations
involved in Space Geodesy studies.
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Over
the
course of his career he has supervised and inspired more than a
dozen Ph.D
students and served as a mentor to many colleagues and young
scientists.
Understanding the importance of training the next generation of
scientists in
satellite geodesy, he has taught geodesy for over 25 years at
engineer schools
(e.g. ENSG style=”font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>[Ecole
de la
Gstyle=”font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-ansi-language:FR” lang=”FR”>omatique style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”>style=”font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>/National
School of Geographic Sciences] style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:
minor-latin”>, ENSTA style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”>style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>[cole
Nationale Suprieure de Techniques Avances]), style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>at
universities
(e.g. Paris VI), and short training courses (e.g. GRGS Summer
School).
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Throughout
his career style=”mso-spacerun:yes”>he has worked assiduously to
improve the
quality of geodetic data, and to advance the science obtained
from these data.
He was a strong proponent of the need for improving the
International
Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF), supporting the contributions
to the IDS,
IGS, ILRS, IVS and IERS. He
has
participated and led national and international proposals for
new innovative
space missions that would continue to advance the contribution
of geodesy to
science and society. Most
recently,
before and after his retirement from CNES, he worked to advance
the proposal
for the Tahiti Geodetic Observatory, a fundamental station
including VLBI, SLR,
GNSS and DORIS whose geographic location would be of prime
importance to the
ITRF and to the mm-level goals of the Global Geodetic Observing
System (GGOS)
in the next decade.
Roman",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman"”>
Roman",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman"”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>As style=”mso-spacerun:yes”> many of his colleagues
noticed, Richard
Biancale had a joie de
vivre. He was
charming, free, passionate and cheerful man who embraced life
whether it was in
a fine restaurant after a scientific meeting, sailing around the
Mediterranean
or across the Atlantic on his catamaran, RaphyO2,
or visiting
interesting cultural or natural locales. style=”mso-spacerun:yes”>
As his colleagues, we were all privileged to enjoy his
friendship. We lament
this tragic loss.
style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>To
his
family, including wife, Irmtraud, and four children, Raphal,
Philipp, Johannes
& Joselyne, we extend our deepest sympathy and most
heartfelt condolences.
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Sincerely,
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>
Frank Lemoine
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”> style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”> style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:
minor-latin”> style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”> style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:
"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”> style=”mso-spacerun:yes”>(NASA Goddard Space Flight
Center, Greenbelt,
Maryland, U.S.A)
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Laurent
Soudarin
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”> style=”mso-spacerun:yes”> style=”font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>(Collecte
Localisation Satellites,
Ramonvile-Saint Agne, FRANCE)
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Jean-Michel
Lemoine & Pascale Ferrage
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”> style=”mso-spacerun:yes”> style=”mso-spacerun:yes”> style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”> style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:
"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>(Centre Nationale
dtudes Spatiales,
Toulouse, FRANCE)
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”>style=”font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”>Jean-Paul
Boy
style=”text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-ideograph”> style=”mso-bidi-font-style:normal”> style=”font-size:11.0pt;font-family:
"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin”> style=”mso-spacerun:yes”>
(EOST, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, FRANCE)
Roman",serif;mso-fareast-font-family:
"Times New Roman"”>
|