György Kulin

Blackboard in Budapest

Kulin's grave on the Farkasréti temető in Budapest

György Kulin (born January 28, 1905 in Nagyszalonta , Austria-Hungary , † April 22, 1989 in Budapest , Hungary ) was a Hungarian astronomer.

Kulin wrote science fiction literature.

Life

György Kulin was born as the fourth child on January 28, 1905 in Salonta by Vilin Kulin and Julianna Tóth. His father, Vilin, was an educated man and had his own library. He came from an initially rich, later poor nobility. Vilin Kulin was banned from Oradea for his socialist activities and later settled in Salonta, where he opened a shoe factory.

He had his first enthusiasm for astronomy when he was 5 years old in Salonta, when Comet Halley flew past Earth in 1910 . But soon the little boy lost interest because he was startled by the news of the supposed end of the world. In the evening, when it was clear, he dared to leave the house. He comforted his mother and said that when he grew up he would shoot the stars.

He liked to play soccer in a sports club in Salonta ( Nagyszalontai Sport Club ). Kulin studied in his hometown and graduated in 1922.

In the autumn he went to Budapest to study economics.

In 1933 he married the teacher Magdolna Blahó. They had four children together. Magdolna (1934), Enikő (1936), György (1944) and Eszter (1949). In Hungary it is customary to name the first girl after the mother and the first boy after the father, in 1934 Magdolna and 1944 György.

Discoveries

He discovered a total of 21 asteroids (list) and is co-discoverer of comet C / 1942 C1 (Whipple-Bernasconi-Kulin). The asteroid of the main belt (3019) Kulin was discovered by him on January 7, 1940 at the Konkoly Observatory in Budapest and named after him in 1990. Kulin was a promoter of amateur astronomy and founded the Magyar Csillagászati ​​Egyesület (Hungarian Astronomical Society) in 1946 , which was dissolved in 1949. Kulin was re-established on February 19, 1989.

asteroid	Discovery date
(1436) Salonta	December 11, 1936
(1441) Bolyai	November 26, 1937
(1442) Corvina	December 29, 1937
(1444) Pannonia	January 6, 1938
(1445) Konkolya	January 6, 1938
(1452) Hunnia	February 26, 1938
(1489) Attila	April 12, 1939
( 1513) Mátra	March 10, 1940
(1538) Detre	September 8, 1940
(1542) Izsák	September 28, 1941
(1710) Gothard	October 20, 1941
(2043) Ortutay	November 12, 1936
(2058) Róka	January 22, 1938
(2242) Balaton	October 13, 1936
(2712) Kreaton	December 29, 1937
(2738) Viracocha	March 12, 1940
(3019) Kulin	January 7, 1940
(3380) (Awaji)	March 15, 1940
(3427) Szentmártoni	January 6, 1938
(7137) Cabot	March 12, 1940
(10258) Sarneczky	January 6, 1940

Web links

• Kulin György emlékoldal (Memory of György Kulin) - website for his 100th birthday with photos, videos, sounds and a complete biography (in Hungarian).
• György Kulin's writings in Hungarian at WorldCat
• Publications by G. Kulin in the Astrophysics Data System