Rüdiger Finsterwalder

Rüdiger Finsterwalder (born July 16, 1930 in Deggendorf ) is emeritus professor for cartography at the Technical University of Munich .

Born in Deggendorf in Lower Bavaria, he attended high school in Rosenheim and studied engineering at the Technical University of Munich from 1950 to 1954 . Through an in-family "tradition" it was particularly interested in the Civil - and surveying : His great-uncle Prof. Sebastian Finsterwalder was around the turn of the century mathematician at the Technical University of Munich and developed for the site acquisition in the high mountains , the so-called. Terrestrial photogrammetry . His sons, Rüdiger's uncle Ulrich Finsterwalder (civil engineer) and Richard Finsterwalder (geodesist) are still known in the professional world.

Initially, the work of his uncle Richard F. brought him into contact with the creation of maps . As a trainee lawyer in the Bavarian surveying service , he passed the state examination for the higher technical service in 1957 and then became a scientific assistant at the Institute for Photogrammetry , Topography and General Cartography. He received his doctorate in 1961 with a dissertation on affine photographic evaluations; in 1967 his habilitation for photogrammetry and cartography followed.

After probation in the management of the cartographic department, Finsterwalder was appointed adjunct professor in 1973. When the institute was divided in 1976, he took over the chair for cartography and reproduction technology . Around this time he also joined the Glaciology Commission at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and was elected to the German Geodetic Commission in 1977.

An important area of work Finsterwalder was the Alpine Club - Cartography . In 1967 the DAV elected him as a speaker for his high-quality map system, and from 1972-75 he published his "Mitteilungen des Deutschen Alpenverein" (German Alpine Club). As a prominent member of the Working Group for Comparative High Mountain Research , Finsterwalder has been leading the new production of many high mountain maps since 1972 and also made his technology available to a successor institute in Nepal .

For the Himalayan countries and some expedition groups, his large-scale maps of Eastern Nepal , which he created with Erwin Schneider , became particularly important: Experts consider his method of depiction to be unsurpassed worldwide for such extreme high mountain landscapes.

In addition to the numerous maps, Rüdiger Finsterwalder published around 120 specialist articles. Her subjects range from the mathematical basics to various applications of photogrammetry and topography or from historical cartography to the economic surveying of southern German and Austrian glaciers. As an enthusiastic mountaineer , he placed special emphasis on optimal terrain representation and rock carvings in high alpine regions - from South America's Cordillera Real over the Alps to the Himalayas. Even in old age he shows a good condition and broad scientific interest, as was determined on the occasion of the colloquium on his 70th birthday (2000).

Web links

• Rüdiger Finsterwalder 70 years. Archived from the original on November 11, 2005 ; Retrieved May 17, 2005 . 
• Rüdiger Finsterwalder turns 75. In: MyTUM portal Technical University of Munich. July 13, 2005, accessed February 16, 2018 .