Howard Percy Robertson
| Howard P. Robertson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 27, 1903 Hoquiam, Washington |
| Died | August 26, 1961 (aged 58) Pasadena, California |
| Nationality | United States |
| Fields | Physicist |
| Institutions |
California Institute of Technology Princeton University |
| Alma mater |
University of Washington California Institute of Technology |
| Thesis | On Dynamical Space-Times Which Contain a Conformal Euclidean 3-Space (1925) |
| Doctoral advisor | Harry Bateman |
| Doctoral students | Abraham H. Taub |
| Known for |
Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker metric Poynting–Robertson effect Robertson–Schrödinger relation |
| Notable awards | Medal for Merit (1946) |
Howard Percy "Bob" Robertson (January 27, 1903 – August 26, 1961) was an American mathematician and physicist known for contributions related to physical cosmology and the uncertainty principle. He was Professor of Mathematical Physics at the California Institute of Technology and Princeton University.
Robertson made important contributions to the mathematics of quantum mechanics, general relativity and differential geometry. Applying relativity to cosmology, he developed the concept of an expanding universe, and predicted the redshift. His name is most often associated with the Poynting–Robertson effect, the process by which solar radiation causes a dust mote orbiting a star to lose angular momentum, which he also described in terms of general relativity.
During World War II, Robertson served with the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) and the Office of Scientific Research and Development (OSRD). He served as Technical Consultant to the Secretary of War, the OSRD Liaison Officer in London, and the Chief of the Scientific Intelligence Advisory Section at Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force.
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