12.07.2015 Views

Riemann's Contribution to Flight and Laser Fusion

Riemann's Contribution to Flight and Laser Fusion

Riemann's Contribution to Flight and Laser Fusion

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An Interview withAdolfBusemannBritish AerospaceEdi<strong>to</strong>r's NoteAdolf Busemann is one of the most outst<strong>and</strong>ing exponentsof <strong>Riemann's</strong> hydrodynamic method in this century.Although he is not well known outside the realm ofsupersonic hydrodynamics, his intellectual influence haspenetrated deeply in<strong>to</strong> all aspects of plasma physics,aerodynamics, <strong>and</strong> the theory of shock waves. The intelectualhis<strong>to</strong>ry of this remarkable figure is recounted inthis interview, which was conducted by <strong>Fusion</strong> edi<strong>to</strong>r-inchiefDr. Steven Bardwell in the summer of 1979 whenBusemann was 78. Busemann is currently professor emeritusat the University of Colorado. He holds many distinguishedhonors from various countries <strong>and</strong> is a memberof the U.S. Academy of Engineering.Busemann's research falls in<strong>to</strong> three general areas,which coincide with the three primary research labora<strong>to</strong>riesin which he worked. The first of these was anindependent institute near Gottingen University, wherehe worked under Ludwig Pr<strong>and</strong>tl, leader of the Germanhydrodynamicist school; Busemann continued these researchesin Dresden. This first period of his researchconcerned the formation <strong>and</strong> propagation of shock waves.Adolf Busemann, summer 7979. Busemann'spioneering work on aerodynamics in the 1930s wasessential in the development of airplanes that couldbreak the sound barrier without crashing. At the <strong>to</strong>pof the page, a schlieren pho<strong>to</strong>graph of a modelsupersonic plane showing the shock waves that formwhen the plane is tested in a wind tunnel.33

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