Izold Pustõlnik

Who was Izold Pustõlnik?

Izold Pustõlnik was an eminent Estonian astronomer who authored numerous scientific publications and served as editor of the Central European Journal of Physics and vice-chairman of the non-profit organization Euroscience Estonia.

A native of the Ukrainian port city of Odessa, Izold Pustõlnik graduated cum laude from Odessa University in 1960 and received his Ph.D. from the University of Tartu in 1969 and his D.Sc. from Saint Petersburg State University in 1994. From the age of 27 in 1965 until his death forty-three years later, he was on the staff of Tartu Observatory where, as a research associate, he worked on the physics of close binary systems, theory of stellar atmospheres, interstellar medium, archaeoastronomy and history of astronomy. He was also a member of the International Astronomical Union, European Astronomical Society, Euroscience, Society for European Astronomy in Culture and served on the Board of Euro-Asian Astronomical Society and the Advisory Board of Astronomical and Astrophysical Transactions.