Asteroid is named after late SUNY Geneseo Professor, Doctor David Meisel
The former astronomy professor and creator of the astronomy department at Geneseo is remembered fondly by other members of the Geneseo community.
Photo courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech
David Meisel, a former professor in SUNY Geneseo’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, sadly passed away this past August. In honor of his contributions to space research and his commitment in spreading his passion for astronomy, an asteroid has been named after him: Asteroid (5965) Meisel; his colleagues agree the asteroid was deservingly named after him.
Dr. Meisel taught at SUNY Geneseo from 1970 to 2005, after earning his PhD in Astronomy from Ohio State University. Outside of the Geneseo community, Dr. Meisel “was a senior associate at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, a fellow of both the American Astronomical Society and the Royal Astronomical Society, and the executive director of the American Meteor Society,” according to the SUNY Geneseo official website.
The American Meteor Society announced the naming of Asteroid 5965 after the late professor. Carl Hergenrother, the current executive director, said that Dr. Miesel’s “leadership built communities that continue to thrive today.” The official naming of an asteroid was made by the IAU, or International Astronomical Union.
Two current SUNY Geneseo professors of Physics and Astronomy echoed the extremely positive sentiments about Dr. Meisel. In the article published on SUNY Geneseo’s official website, Geneseo’s chair of the Department of Physics & Astronomy, Dr. Savi Iyer, spoke highly of Dr. Meisel, saying, “The department owes its reputation for academic rigor and strength to Dr. Meisel as among the early founders of the department.”
Dr. Aaron Steinhauer, who is pictured with Dr. David Meisel in the same SUNY Geneseo article, was generous enough to sit down for an interview about his time knowing and working with Dr. Meisel. Dr. Steinhauer, a professor of Physics and Astronomy at Geneseo, said that he started at Geneseo just as Dr. Meisel was retiring, so he was "definitely a mentor to me.”
Dr. Steinhauer explained that the asteroid named after his former mentor is a “main belt asteroid,” and added that it is similar to the kind that viewers often see in the Star Wars franchise. Dr. Steinhauer laughed and smiled as he remembered his time working with Dr. Meisel, praising him as “a true genius” and “one of the nicest people [he has] ever met.” He told anecdotes of when he would ask the late professor about an astronomical phenomenon, and he would always know more about the subject than anyone else, no matter what it was. Dr. Steinhauer explained that Dr. Meisel’s explanations were always extremely thorough, yet he was “a no-ego genius”.
Dr. Meisel’s achievements as a fellow of multiple astronomical societies, a NASA senior associate, and the executive director of the American Meteor Society are undoubtedly impressive, but his impact on SUNY Geneseo was also extremely important. Not only did he make meaningful connections with and impressions on fellow professors, but he “was the first astronomer at Geneseo,” as Dr. Steinhauer recalled.
Dr. Meisel is responsible for the creation of the Astronomy Department here at Geneseo, which has since merged to become the Department of Physics & Astronomy. Located in the Integrated Science Center in the middle of campus, the department consists of several skilled professors and offers SUNY Geneseo students the opportunities for physics- and astronomy-based research projects.