Frank Curtis Michel (1934 - 2015)

Born 5 Jun 1934 in La Crosse, La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States

Husband of Beverly Muriel (Kaminsky) Michel — married 4 Oct 1958 in Sacramento, California, USA

Died 26 Feb 2015 at age 80 in Harris, Texas, United States

Biography

Frank Curtis Michel is Notable.

Father: Frank Michel
Mother: Viola Knutson^[1]

Frank Curtis "Curt" Michel, Ph.D. (June 5, 1934 – February 26, 2015) was an American astrophysicist; a professor of astrophysics at Rice University in Houston, Texas; a former United States Air Force pilot; and a NASA astronaut.

In 1965, Michel was selected by NASA in Astronauts Group 4, ^[2] but resigned in 1969 before being assigned to an mission.

Obituary

Frank Curtis Michel, known to his family and friends as Curt, born June 5th 1934 in La Crosse, Wisconsin to Frank and Viola Michel, passed away on February 26th, 2015 in Houston, Texas.

Curt was preceded in death by his parents and by his first wife Beverly Kaminsky Michel.^[3]

He is survived by his loving wife, companion and soul mate Bonnie Hausman of Houston Texas, by his brother Otto Bloom of San Francisco California, by his children Alice Elizabeth Michel of Sacramento California and Jeffrey Bryan Michel of Austin, Texas, and by his grandchildren Dexter Allen of Sacramento California, Brent Christopher Michel of Portland, Oregon and Gregory Curtis Michel of Austin, Texas.

Curt was a graduate of the California Institute of Technology (BS 1955, PhD Physics 1962) and a student of Nobel Prize winners Richard Feynman and William Fowler. He served as a pilot in the United States Air Force 1955-1958 flying F-86-D Interceptors in the United States and Europe. Curt was chosen to be a scientist astronaut in 1965 for the Apollo Missions but resigned, returning to research, in 1969 when it became clear that he would not be assigned to a lunar mission. He was a founding member of the Space Physics and Astronomy Department at Rice University and later served as department chair from 1974-1979. He spent his academic career at Rice specializing in radio pulsar research and the study of solar winds and numerical methods. He retired in 2000, but continued research as an emeritus professor until his death.

A private family burial is planned for 11am March 23rd, 2015 with full military honors at the United States Houston National Cemetery. Friends and colleagues are invited to join the family in celebrating Curt's life at a memorial service Sunday May 3rd, 2015 at the Rice University Chapel 1:00-2:00 pm to be followed by a reception in the Rice Memorial Center Grand Hall from 2:00-6:00 pm. Friends, family and colleagues are invited to share their memories of Curt at the reception. These remembrances will be recorded for posterity.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Aspen Center for Physics.^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ Viola Parker on Find A Grave: Memorial #87654638 accessed on 25 Mar 2019
2. ↑ Wikipedia List of Astronauts, by Year
3. ↑ Beverly M Kaminsky Michel on Find A Grave: Memorial #144264602 accessed on 25 Mar 2019
4. ↑ Published on NYTimes.com, 16 Mar 2015

See also:

• Wikipedia: Curt Michel
• Wikidata: Item Q3270358, en:Wikipedia
• Find A Grave: Memorial #143968004
• Ancestry Profile
• "United States Public Records, 1970-2009," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJJP-2ZD8 : 16 May 2014), Curtis Michel, Residence, San Diego, California, United States; a third party aggregator of publicly available information.