Robinson, Brian John (1930 - 2004)

Summary

Brian John Robinson was a pioneer and major contributor to the field of radio astronomy. He spent most of his 33 year career working for the many subdivisions of CSIRO's Radiophysics Division. Brian Robinson was a founding member of the Steering Committee for the Australia Telescope, later becoming the Vice-Chairman and was deeply involved in the telescopes design and construction.

Details

After graduating with a Masters Degree from the University of Sydney (MSc), Robinson worked as a Research Officer at CSIRO Physics Laboratory from 1953-54. He was awarded the Rutherford Scholar of the Royal Society in 1954 and moved to the United Kingdom to undertake a PhD at Cambridge University. Upon completion of his doctorate, Robinson went on to hold many prestigious posts including visiting scientist at the Netherlands Foundation for Radio Astronomy in Leiden (1958-61), Director of Research, Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory (1971-79) and Chairman Inter-Union Commission on Allocation of Frequencies (1976-1994).

Robinson pioneered the technical development of very sensitive receivers (masers and parametric amplifiers) used for the detection of extremely weak radio signals. His other major contribution was the use of emission and absorption microwave spectral lines to explore the galaxy. This was used to detect maser-like radiation by hydroxyl molecules within interstellar space and galactic centre. Towards the end of his Career, Robinson research evolved to take in satellite navigation systems. He has been awarded and honoured many times for his contribution to radio astronomy (see Chronology section).

Chronology

1952

Education - BSc (hons), University of Sydney

1953 -

Education - Master of Science (MSc) completed. Location: University of Sydney, NSW

1953 - 1954

Career position - Research Officer, CSIRO Radiophysics Laboratory

1954 - 1957

Award - Rutherford Scholar of the Royal Society

1958

Education - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) completed. Location: Cambridge University, UK

1958 - 1961

Career position - Visiting Scientist at the Netherlands Foundation for Radio Astronomy. Location: Leiden

1962 - 1965

Career position - Senior Research Scientist in the Radiophysics Laboratory at CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation)

1963

Award - Premium of Institution of Electrical Engineers received. Location: London

1964 - 2004

Award - Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society (FRAS)

1965 - 1966

Career position - Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO Radiophysics Laboratory

1966 - 1982

Career position - Member, National Committee for Radio Science

1966 - 1989

Career position - Member of Committee, Astronomical Society of Australia

1967 - 2004

Award - Fellow of the Australian Institute of Physics (FAIP)

1968 - 1970

Career position - Deputy Director of the Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory Parkes. Location: Parkes

1968 - 1975

Career position - Senior Principal Research Scientist at the CSIRO Radiophysics Laboratory

1971 - 1977

Career position - Member, Editorial Committee, Australian journal of physics

1971 - 1979

Career position - Director of Research at the Australian National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Location: Parkes

1972 - 1980

Career position - Chairman of the Australian Radio Astronomy Panel

1974

Award - Walter Burfitt Prize received from the Royal Society of New South Wales

1974 - 2004

Award - Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science (FAA)

1975

Career position - Founding member of the Steering Committee for the Australia Telescope

1975 - 1980

Career position - Council member of the International Scientific Radio Union

1975 - 1995

Career position - Chief Research Scientist at the CSIRO Radiophysics Laboratory

1976 - 1994

Career position - Chairman of the Working Group on Protection of Molecular Line Frequencies of the International Astronomical Union

1977 - 1980

Career position - Member, Board of Standards of the Australian Journals of Scientific Research

1977 - 1990

Career position

1980 - 1987

Career position - Head of the Millimeter-Wave Facility. Location: Epping, Victoria

1987 - 1989

Career position - President, Astronomical Society of Australia

1987 - 1995

Career position - Chairman of the Inter-Union Commission on Allocation of Frequencies

1995

Life event - Retired

Related entries

Published resources

Journal Articles

• Whiteoak, J. B.; and Sim, H. L., 'Brian John Robinson, 1930-2004', Historical Records of Australian Science, 17 (2) (2006), 263-281, https://doi.org/10.1071/HR06006. Details

Resources

• 'Robinson, Brian John (1930-2004)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-1474249. Details

Resource Sections

• Ward, C., 'Brian John Robinson', in CSIROpedia, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), 2011, https://csiropedia.csiro.au/Robinson-Brian-John. Details