68
ULL and the IAC. This set-up also serves to counter any tendency towards
secession, the natural tendency in our land.
In 1985, after the much-publicized inaugurations of the Institute and its
Observatories (Chap. 13), I finally took the decision formally to relinquish
my teaching duties at the University, regardless of the consequent substantial
drop in my salary; at the same time I requested special leave of absence from
my chair in order to dedicate my efforts even more intensely to the cementation of the IAC. It bothered me greatly that, with so much travel and commitments taking more of my time, my students had begun to see less of me in the
classroom. As the Spanish saying goes, you cannot be ringing the bells and
following the procession at the same time. I was leaving behind many years of
university teaching: physics for chemists, engineers, and mathematicians in
the sixties, and astrophysics in the seventies and eighties.
Astrophysics research teams gradually began to emerge in Spanish universities, with openings for lecturers at various levels. Graduates and doctors in
astrophysics were beginning to appear everywhere. Today there are research
teams scattered all over Spain (see Chap. 24).
It is only fair to make special mention of the Department of Theoretical
Physics and the Cosmos at the University of Granada (its name has been tempered to the winds of legislative change vis-à-vis the Spanish university system). Thanks largely to its creator, Professor Eduardo Battaner, this department
has produced many very well-trained Spanish astrophysicists.
Eduardo Battaner, a pioneer in this discipline, was a key figure in blazing a
trail on the summits of the Sierra Nevada during the seventies. That many of
our best researchers today have been students of his is proof of this. I have
always maintained that Spanish astrophysics would not have become what it
is today without this multi-talented teacher, researcher, and science popularizer; this loyal, supportive, and keen-witted friend.
It is not my purpose to raise memorials to renowned Spanish astrophysicists, so I shall not mention here all Battaner’s achievements and adventures.
Neither shall I recount the stories of the many university research groups that
now populate the country. There is, of course, much to tell, but others will
tell it.
I have always been convinced that astrophysics cannot flourish in Spain
through large research centres alone. As in the most developed countries, also
necessary are university research teams. I have tried always to stimulate their
creation and help them prosper. As the first doctor and professor of astrophysics in Spain, I served for many years on doctoral and professorial tribunals.
In 1977, when I was Vice-chancellor of Research at the University of La
Laguna, I wrote a letter to all the faculty deans with study programmes in
F. Sánchez
ULL and the IAC. This set-up also serves to counter any tendency towards
secession, the natural tendency in our land.
In 1985, after the much-publicized inaugurations of the Institute and its
Observatories (Chap. 13), I finally took the decision formally to relinquish
my teaching duties at the University, regardless of the consequent substantial
drop in my salary; at the same time I requested special leave of absence from
my chair in order to dedicate my efforts even more intensely to the cementation of the IAC. It bothered me greatly that, with so much travel and commitments taking more of my time, my students had begun to see less of me in the
classroom. As the Spanish saying goes, you cannot be ringing the bells and
following the procession at the same time. I was leaving behind many years of
university teaching: physics for chemists, engineers, and mathematicians in
the sixties, and astrophysics in the seventies and eighties.
Astrophysics research teams gradually began to emerge in Spanish universities, with openings for lecturers at various levels. Graduates and doctors in
astrophysics were beginning to appear everywhere. Today there are research
teams scattered all over Spain (see Chap. 24).
It is only fair to make special mention of the Department of Theoretical
Physics and the Cosmos at the University of Granada (its name has been tempered to the winds of legislative change vis-à-vis the Spanish university system). Thanks largely to its creator, Professor Eduardo Battaner, this department
has produced many very well-trained Spanish astrophysicists.
Eduardo Battaner, a pioneer in this discipline, was a key figure in blazing a
trail on the summits of the Sierra Nevada during the seventies. That many of
our best researchers today have been students of his is proof of this. I have
always maintained that Spanish astrophysics would not have become what it
is today without this multi-talented teacher, researcher, and science popularizer; this loyal, supportive, and keen-witted friend.
It is not my purpose to raise memorials to renowned Spanish astrophysicists, so I shall not mention here all Battaner’s achievements and adventures.
Neither shall I recount the stories of the many university research groups that
now populate the country. There is, of course, much to tell, but others will
tell it.
I have always been convinced that astrophysics cannot flourish in Spain
through large research centres alone. As in the most developed countries, also
necessary are university research teams. I have tried always to stimulate their
creation and help them prosper. As the first doctor and professor of astrophysics in Spain, I served for many years on doctoral and professorial tribunals.
In 1977, when I was Vice-chancellor of Research at the University of La
Laguna, I wrote a letter to all the faculty deans with study programmes in
F. Sánchez