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In Memoriam: Edmond M. Reeves,
Aug 08, 2008
In memoriam: Edmond M. Reeves 1934-2008
Edmond M. Reeves, an OSA Fellow and retired chief scientist with NASA, died August 8, 2008 of cancer in Arlington, Virginia. He was 74.
Reeves joined NASA in 1982. He served as chief of the astrophysics payloads branch on space shuttle efforts and as chief scientist for NASA's space station unit. From 1993 until his retirement in 1998, he was deputy director and later director of the Flight Systems Office, where he was responsible for planning and coordinating science operations for missions including Spacelab, commercial space programs and U.S. experiments performed on the Russian Mir space station. He also was a scientific leader for NASA's International Space Station research facility and was executive secretary of the Space Station Utilization Board.
Reeves received bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Western Ontario. His PhD, which he received in 1959, was in atomic and molecular physics.
He was a senior research associate at the Harvard College Observatory for 17 years before moving to the National Center for Atmospheric Research's High Altitude Observatory in Boulder, Colo. At both places, Reeves often worked on scientific projects for NASA.
Reeves was a fellow of the Optical Society of America and the American Physical Society and was a member of many professional organizations, including the International Academy of Astronautics, International Astronomical Union and American Astronomical Society. In 1974, he received NASA's Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal.
Survivors include his wife of 52 years, Vivian L. Reeves, two children and three grandchildren.
