Professor George Ivanov
Nikola Bonev was born on the 11th ( 23th ) of July, 1898 in Stara Zagora. In 1922 he graduated at the Sofia University in physics. In 1937 he was elected as a professor in Astronomy. Bulgarian Academy of Sciences elected him a corresponding member in 1948 and member in 1977.
Nikola Bonev headed the chair of Astronomy in Sofia University for over 40 years. He wrote first textbooks on Astronomy, Theoretical Astronomy and Astrophysics. His textbooks have been republished many times up to now. His studies on Lunar and Mars craters were highest graded from astronomers. He proposed that the big craters have volcanic origins and smaller ones – meteoric origins. These scientific results are widely accepted in science and can be read in every contemporary textbook in Astronomy.
Except scientific and teaching activities, Bonev developed enormous public and organizational activities. He was chairman of the Astronomy Department and Director of the Astronomical Observatory in Sofia University for over 40 years. He wasdirector of the Astronomycal Institute of BAS for 24 years. He initiated creation the National Astronomical Observatory inRozhen mauntain, the largest observatory in South – Eastern Europe and something that Bulgarian Science can be proud of.
Created: 15 September 2006
Updated: 27 September 2015