Renowned astrophysicist SM Chitre passed away in Mumbai on Monday.
The stalwart of the Indian astronomy community, Prof Chitre, was 84.
He was admitted to Kokilaben Ambani Hospital in Mumbai, where he passed away.
Prof Chitre's scientific research is focused on solar physics, astrophysics and gravitational lensing.
He has done extensive research on the Sun's magnetic activity cycle, the solar dynamo theory, and the role of neutrals in the solar atmosphere.
Born on May 7, 1936, Shashikumar Madhusudan Chitre was a stalwart of Indian astronomy community and particularly solar physics.
A recipient of Padma Bhushan, he retired as a senior professor from TIFR in Mumbai in 2001.
He was the driving force behind the establishment of UM-DAE CEBS in the Kalina campus of Mumbai University.
He served on boards of Nehru Centre trust as well as JN Tata trust for a number of years.
He was also passionate about science education and outreach and gave a large number of lectures in schools and colleges. Incidentally, he was the voice behind the first-ever show in Mumbai's iconic Nehru Planetarium.
He was the former president of Astronomical Society of India and was a member of multiple committees in recent decades which shaped India's science policy.
(Published 11 January 2021, 14:02 IST)
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