Georges Lema\^itre: Life, Science and Legacy
History and Philosophy of Physics
2016-12-12 v1
Abstract
This paper celebrates the remarkable life, science and legacy of Abb\'e Georges Lema\^itre, the Belgian cleric and professor of physics; he was the architect of the fireworks model for the origin of the universe. He died half a century ago, three days after learning that Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson had discovered the cosmic microwave background. Despite being gravely ill from leukaemia, Lema\^itre lucidly praised this news, which confirmed the explosive genesis of our universe.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1612.03003,
title = {Georges Lema\^itre: Life, Science and Legacy},
author = {Simon Mitton},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1612.03003},
year = {2016}
}
Comments
Talk given on 11 November 2026 at the Ordinary Meeting of the Royal Astronomical Society