Hahn, Otto
Published: July 16, 2007, 4:58 pm
Updated: July 16, 2007, 4:58 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Peter SaundryOtto Hahn (1879-1968), German physical chemist who received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1944 for his discovery of the process of fission in uranium and thorium in 1938. Hahn's discovery of fission was made in collaboration with Lise Meitner and Fritz Strassmann. This fundamental discovery immediately contributed to the discovery of the nuclear chain reaction and the development of nuclear weapons and ultimately nuclear power.
With doctorate in hand from the University of Marburg in Germany, Hahn intended to make a career as an industrial chemist in a company with international business connections. He traveled to England to improve his English-language skills and found a job as a laboratory assistant at University College, London. Hahn quickly demonstrated his great skill as an experimentalist by isolating radioactive thorium. After working with Ernest Rutherford in Montreal, he joined the faculty of the University of Berlin.
Hahn, Meitner, and Strassmann were not engaged in nuclear weapons research during World War II. At the end of the war Hahn was astonished to hear that he had won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1944 and that nuclear bombs had been developed from his basic discovery. At the Nobel Prize awards ceremony, the chairman of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry announced, "Professor Hahn has informed us that he is regrettably unable to attend this ceremony"—the British, seeking information from him about the failed German effort to develop an atomic bomb, were holding him prisoner. In the post-war era, as director of the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Hahn publicly opposed the use of nuclear weapons.
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Citation
Cutler J. Cleveland (Lead Author);Peter Saundry (Topic Editor) "Hahn, Otto". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth July 16, 2007; Last revised Date July 16, 2007; Retrieved May 18, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Hahn,_Otto>
The Author
Cutler J. Cleveland is Professor of Earth and Environment at Boston University, where he also is on the faculty of the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. Professor Cleveland is Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Energy (Elsevier, 2004), winner of an American Library Association award, the Dictionary of Energy (Elsevier, 2005), Handbook of Energy (Elsevier, forthcoming), and is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. He is the recipient of the Adelma ... (Full Bio)
Otto Hahn (1879-1968), German physical chemist who received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1944 for his discovery of the process of fission in uranium and thorium in 1938. Hahn's discovery of fission was made in collaboration with Lise Meitner and Fritz Strassmann. This fundamental discovery immediately contributed to the discovery of the nuclear chain reaction and the development of nuclear weapons and ultimately nuclear power.
With doctorate in hand from the University of Marburg in Germany, Hahn intended to make a career as an industrial chemist in a company with international business connections. He traveled to England to improve his English-language skills and found a job as a laboratory assistant at University College, London. Hahn quickly demonstrated his great skill as an experimentalist by isolating radioactive thorium. After working with Ernest Rutherford in Montreal, he joined the faculty of the University of Berlin.
Hahn, Meitner, and Strassmann were not engaged in nuclear weapons research during World War II. At the end of the war Hahn was astonished to hear that he had won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1944 and that nuclear bombs had been developed from his basic discovery. At the Nobel Prize awards ceremony, the chairman of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry announced, "Professor Hahn has informed us that he is regrettably unable to attend this ceremony"—the British, seeking information from him about the failed German effort to develop an atomic bomb, were holding him prisoner. In the post-war era, as director of the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Hahn publicly opposed the use of nuclear weapons.
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Otto Hahn. (Source: Vigyan Prasar Science Portal)
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