description Fred Whipple Overview
Fred Lawrence Whipple (1906-2004) was an American astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of comets and meteors. While working at Harvard College Observatory, he proposed in 1950 the 'icy conglomerate' model (popularly known as the 'dirty snowball' theory) suggesting that comet nuclei are composed primarily of frozen water and other ices mixed with dust and rocky material. This theory, which explained how comets form their characteristic tails when approaching the sun, was confirmed in 1986 when the Giotto spacecraft observed Halley's Comet up close. Whipple also discovered six comets and pioneered photographic techniques for tracking meteors.
insights Ranking position
Fred Whipple ranks #312 of 464 in the Astronomer ranking, behind Tabetha Boyajian, ahead of Willem de Sitter.
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