Neil Gehrels, American astronomer, Died at 64

  Reseacher

Cornelis A. “Neil” Gehrels was born on October 3, 1952, and died on February 6, 2017.

He was an American astrophysicist specializing in the field of gamma-ray astronomy.

Neil Gehrels was Chief of the Astroparticle Physics Laboratory at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center from 1995 until his death.

Gehrels was best known for his work developing the field from early balloon instruments to today’s space observatories such as the NASA Swift mission, for which he was the Principal Investigator.

Gehrels was leading the WFIRST wide-field infrared telescope forward toward a launch in the mid-2020s.

Neil Gehrels was a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Neil Gehrels passed away at 64 years old.