František Běhounek

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František Běhounek (born October 28, 1898 in Prague - Holeschowitz ; † January 1, 1973 in Karlovy Vary ) was a Czechoslovak physicist and writer with a focus on youth literature and science fiction .

Life

František Běhounek was the son of a machine fitter. He attended grammar school from 1916 to 1921 and studied physics and mathematics at Charles University in Prague , and later also radiology in France. His lecturer was Marie Curie , where he was awarded a Dr. phil. PhD.

In 1923 and 1924, in Jáchymov , he checked the requirements for the construction of a radioactive water pipe from the Svornost mine to the spa. During his rock measurements, he found that Europe-wide record values ​​were being achieved here.

But cosmic rays were also of interest to him. So he took part on the recommendation of Curie in 1926 in the North Pole expedition of Roald Amundsen , Lincoln Ellsworth and Umberto Nobile with the airship Norge , but stayed at the base on the Kongsfjord on Spitsbergen . Measurements during the expedition were carried out with his instruments. He published the results of his research with the Swedish physicist Finn Malmgren (1895–1928).

He also took part in the Nobiles airship expedition with the Italia in 1928. With her he was the first Czech to cross the North Pole in the air. When the airship crashed, he was with those rescued by the Krassin . He used the long waiting time on the ice floe and the trip on the Krassin for his research. He described this in 1928 in his book Trosečníci na kře ledové ( German  The Stranded of the Polar Sea ).

In Prague he was involved in the establishment of the Atmospheric Electricity Observatory in Štrbské pleso . In 1929 he completed his habilitation in radiology and atmospheric electricity. In 1935 he became director of the State Radiological Institute. After the World War in 1946, he became head of the physical department of the Radiotherapy Institute in Bulovka Hospital in Prague. He remained on the board until 1955.

Further stations in his university career were associate professor in 1954 and full professor in 1956. In 1955 he co-founded the Faculty of Technical Physics and Nuclear Physics at the University of Prague, which was incorporated into the Czech Technical University in 1959 . From 1963 to 1971 he held the chair for dosimetry and dealt with applications of ionizing radiation .

From the 1950s he was sent to UNESCO by the Czechoslovak Foreign Ministry as an expert . At the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences he was external director of dosimetry. The radiation protection it has always been a special concern.

Běhounek was a corresponding member of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome.

As a writer, he wrote 28 volumes in popular science and fiction , such as Kniha robinsonů (1944) or Ledovou stopou (1946), in which he a. a. processed his impressions of the expeditions. His science fiction works are still known today , including Akce L (1956), Robinsoni z vesmíru (1958) and Projekt Scavanger (1961).

Works

  • Seven weeks on the ice floe. The downfall of the Nobile expedition. FA Brockhaus, Leipzig 1929
  • Shipwreck in space
  • Gold and silver plating
  • The mutiny on the "Bounty" and other robinsonades
  • Man and radioactivity
  • The dragon island. In: Small youth series . Vol. 14, issue 20, 1963
  • Rebellion on the island. Series Crime Adventure Fantastic , 1966
  • The Ten from the Alexander / With Spanish sailors on the turtle islands. Series Crime Adventure Fantastic , 1967

Appreciation

Planet No. 3278, discovered in 1984, was named after him.

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Běhounek, František
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Behounek, Franz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Czech physicist and writer
DATE OF BIRTH October 28, 1898
PLACE OF BIRTH Prague
DATE OF DEATH 1st January 1973
Place of death Karlovy Vary