Ernst-August Lauter (1920–1984)

Ernst-August Lauter (1920-1984) With deep sorrow we announce the untimely death of Professor Dr. Ernst-August Lauter, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Sciences of the German Democratic Republic, on 21 October 1984 after a fatal illness at the age of 64. Professor Lauter was a member of the URSI Committee in the German Democratic Republic, and a member of the former URSI Committee for solar-terrestrial physics. Prof. Lauter started his scientific career in 1947 with observations of the ionospheric D region. In 1951, he initiated the Observatory of Ionosphere Research at Kiihlungsborn, which in the sequel bore the stamp of his scientific activity. Always devoting much energy to advocating and fostering the development of interdisciplinary solar-terrestrial research and international collaboration in this field, he became the first Director of the Central Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Physics of the GDR Academy of Sciences, founded in 1969. Prof. Lauter was one of the first to promote, in the early 70ies, the idea of an international co-operative programme for the study of the stratosphere, mesosphere and lower ionosphere, whieh later on took shape in the present Middle Atmosphere Programme, MAP. Of his numerous significant contributions to middle atmosphere sciences, we should mention here the development of diagnostics of structure and dynamics of the mesopause region by means of ground-based radio techniques (absorption and phase-heights); extensive studies, based on these methods, of the relations between mesopheric and stratospheric dynamics, especially in winter and during the seasonal transition periods, and his discovery, already in 1950, of the post-geomagnetic storm aftereffects (PSE) in the D region, which he took up again in the late 70ies with a comprehensive analysis and study of the PSE mechanisms, related to high-energy particle precipitation from the magnetosphere. He also first recognized the control of PSE effects by the interplanetary magnetic sector structure. Prof. Lauter’s vivid personality was characterized by his enthusiasm in science and abundance in ideas, much stimulating his studies and collaborators, always setting an example by his own restless work.

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Until his last days he was still busy with studies of solar forcing of atmospheric changes, and coupling between middle and lower atmosphere. In addition to his purely scientific activities, the late Professor Lauter was very active as a science manager and administrator. For many years he represented the Academy of Sciences of the GDR in COSPAR, and during the period 1967-1975 he was a member of the COSPAR Bureau. His memory will be kept alive by a large number of colleagues in his country and abroad>‘)

“F’his obituary was prepared from material received from Prof. J. Taubenheim, pleted by information from the COSPAR Secretariat.

and was com-

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