Auguste Piccard

Swiss physicist, inventor, and pioneer of stratospheric and abyssal exploration.

Chronology: 1884-01-28 – 1962-03-24

Origins & Early Life

Auguste Antoine Piccard (28 January 1884 – 24 March 1962) was a Swiss physicist, inventor and explorer known for his record-breaking hydrogen balloon flights, with which he studied the Earth's upper atmosphere and became the first person to enter the stratosphere. Piccard was also known for his invention of the first bathyscaphe, FNRS-2, with which he made a number of unmanned dives in 1948 to explore the ocean's depths. Piccard's twin brother Jean Felix Piccard is also a notable figure in the annals of science and exploration, as are a number of their relatives, including Jacques Piccard, Bertrand Piccard, Jeannette Piccard and Don Piccard. == Biography == Piccard and his twin brother Jean Felix Piccard were born in Basel, Switzerland, on 28 January 1884.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Showing an intense interest in science as a child, he attended the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zürich and became a professor of physics in Brussels at the Free University of Brussels in 1922, the same year his son Jacques Piccard was born. He was a member of the Solvay Congress of 1922, 1924, 1927, 1930 and 1933. In 1930, an interest in ballooning and a curiosity about the upper atmosphere led him to design a spherical...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

Source: Wikipedia