Mourning Professor Reinhard Kulessa
20.06.2024 |
It is with great grief that we bid farewell to Professor Reinhard Kulessa, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, a great colleague who passed away on 13 June this year. Born in 1940 he dedicated his life to nuclear physics as scientist and academic teacher. Already in 1979, he started to work at GSI in the group of Professor Dirk Schwalm, making tremendous contributions to understanding of nuclear structure with studies at UNILAC. Later he contributed to the success of the KAOS, HADES and LAND collaborations, and provided important advice to the Management in various GSI/FAIR committees. As such he was one of the first members elected into the GSI User Executive Committee in 2002, where he represented the users’ interests in “Nuclear Structure” until 2007.
Reinhard Kulessa early on supported the development of the new accelerator infrastructure FAIR and promoted the participation of Polish scientists and institutions in this new project, in particular as a co-author of the Super-FRS proposal for FAIR. In 2005, Reinhard Kulessa became the Polish representative in the FAIR International Steering Committee and signed the FAIR Memorandum of Understanding prior to many other participating countries. As such his role in the establishment of FAIR and the Polish participation cannot be understated.
We are grateful for his tireless efforts to promote cooperation between the countries and institutions, and thanks to him scientific contacts with the Jagiellonian University until today are deep and excellent. Those colleagues at GSI and FAIR who knew him personally, value him as remarkable scientist, gentle person and for his interest far-beyond natural sciences. Many of us gained a friend in him and will keep him in warmest memories. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family and friends. (CP)
