Aleksander Wolszczan Polish astronomer. Date of Birth: 29.04.1946 Country: Poland

1. Polski astronom
2. Move to the United States
3. Discovery of the first exoplanetary system
4. Achievements and recognition

Polski astronom

Alexander Wolszczan is a Polish astronomer who began his scientific career in Poland. He obtained his Master's degree from the Nicolaus Copernicus University in 1969 and his PhD degree in 1975.

Move to the United States

In 1982, Wolszczan moved to the United States where he worked at Cornell University and Princeton University. Later, he became a professor at the University of Pennsylvania in California. He continued to work as a professor at the University of Toruń. He is also a member of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Discovery of the first exoplanetary system

In 1990, while conducting astronomical observations at the Arecibo Observatory, Wolszczan discovered the pulsar PSR 1257+12. Analysis of the data revealed the presence of two planets with masses of 3.4 and 2.8 times that of Earth orbiting the pulsar. These findings were confirmed by Canadian astronomer Dale Frail using a different radio telescope. This discovery provided the first evidence of an extrasolar planetary system.

Achievements and recognition

The results of Wolszczan's research were published in 1992 and 1994, respectively, and have since been widely recognized by the scientific community. In 1996, he was awarded the Beatrice M. Tinsley Prize by the American Astronomical Society and a postage stamp with his image was issued in Poland. In 2008, Wolszczan was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Physics.