Vytautas Straižys

Vytautas Straižys (born August 20, 1936)^[1] is a Lithuanian astronomer. In 1963–65 he and his collaborators created and developed the Vilnius photometric system, a seven-color intermediate band system, optimized for photometric stellar classification. In 1996 he was elected a Corresponding Member of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences.^[1] Straižys is an editor of the journal Baltic Astronomy. He is currently working at the Molėtai Astronomical Observatory. Asteroid 68730 Straizys in 2002 was named after him.

Education and professional history

In 1959, he graduated from Vilnius University in astrophysics. In 1959–62, he was a graduate student of the Institute of Physics and Mathematics of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences. In 1962–67, he was a scientific researcher at the same institute. From 1967 to 1990, he headed the Astrophysical Department of the Institute of Physics, Vilnius. In 1990–2003, he was the head of the Astronomical Observatory of the Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy, Vilnius. In 1991–96 Associate Director of the same Institute. Since 2003, he is chief researcher of the same institute, Vilnius University. In 1992–93 academic year: visiting professor in Union College, Schenectady, New York.

Scientific activity

Main directions of the scientific research: multicolor photometry of stars, stellar physical parameters, stellar classification, interstellar extinction, interstellar clouds, star clusters, Galactic structure. One of the authors of the Vilnius photometric system for the classification of stars. In 1969–90 conducted the construction of the Molėtai Observatory in Lithuania and the Maidanak Observatory in Uzbekistan. Author of 324 scientific papers published in 1957–2009 and of three monographs: Multicolor Stellar Photometry (Vilnius, 1977, in Russian), Metal-Deficient Stars (Vilnius, 1982, in Russian) and Multicolor Stellar Photometry (Tucson, Arizona, 1992 and 1995, revised version, in English). In 1977–91 editor of the Bulletin of the Vilnius Astronomical Observatory, since 1992 editor of an international journal Baltic Astronomy. Scientific adviser of 22 doctoral dissertations.

Membership

• International Astronomical Union (IAU, 1967)
• Institute for Space Observations, New York (1988)
• European Astronomical Society (EAS, 1990)
• American Astronomical Society (AAS, 1991)
• Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP, 1991)
• American Planetary Society (1991)
• Astronomical Society of New York (1992)
• Lithuanian Astronomical Union (president 1995–2003)
• Vice-President and President of the IAU Commission on Stellar Classification (1979–85)
• Expert Member (1991–95) and Corresponding Member (since 1996) of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences

Honours

Awards

• Lithuanian Republic Science Award (1973)
• Nomination as a distinguished scientist of Lithuania (1986)
• Chretien Grant of the American Astronomical Society (2000)
• Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas, Officer's Cross (2003)
• Lithuanian National Science Award (2004)

Named after him

• Asteroid 68730 Straizys

Publications

1. V. Straizys, Multicolor Stellar Photometry (in Russian), Mokslas Publishers, Vilnius, Lithuania, 1977
2. V. Straizys, Metal-Deficient Stars (in Russian), Mokslas Publishers, Vilnius, Lithuania, 1982
3. V. Straizys, Multicolor Stellar Photometry (in English), Pachart Publishing House, Tucson, Arizona, 1992 (2nd publication in 1995)
4. V. Straizys, The Milky Way (in Lithuanian), Mokslas Publishers, 1992
5. V. Straizys, Astronomy, 1993 (a textbook for secondary schools, in Lithuanian)
6. A. Azusienis, A. Pucinskas, V. Straizys, Astronomy, 1995 (a textbook for universities, in Lithuanian, 2nd revised publication in 2003)
7. V. Straizys, Astronomical Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Lithuanian), Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy, 2002 (2nd publication in 2003)

References