The namesake of a celestial object — known officially as minor planet (288478) Fahlman — was among 13 notable B.C. residents feted at Government House Monday.
Gregory Fahlman, who has an international reputation as an astronomy researcher, was the lone Vancouver Islander on the Order of British Columbia roster of recipients, which also included homeless advocate and fundraiser Donna Crocker of Langley and Burnaby’s Peter S. Anderson, an expert in emergency communications and disaster warning.
Fahlman, 69, is with a group reviewing a science program in South Korea and was unavailable to attend Monday’s event, but his contemporaries said his honour is richly deserved and a tribute to years of work.
“He’s probably the linchpin of Canadian astronomy right now,” said Kim Venn, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Victoria.
Fahlman has had the honorary distinction of having a minor planet — an asteroid or other relatively small celestial object — named after him. Minor planet Fahlman is located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Venn said Fahlman has served since 2003 with Victoria-based National Research Council Herzberg, Astronomy and Astrophysics Programs — which includes the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory. He is currently general manager.
Before that, he was an astronomy professor at the University of British Columbia, where he worked from 1971 to 1999.
“At UBC, he was a totally active research professor,” Venn said. “He came up with some really clever Hubble Space Telescope programs to measure the age of the galaxy and measure the age of the oldest stars.”
Venn said his Order of B.C. honour likely stems from his work over the past 10 years, during which he has helped give Canadian astronomy more of an international presence.
“He’s gotten himself on the advising committees for pretty much all the major observatories, and he’s gotten Canada membership on these major astronomy projects around the world,” Venn said. “These are multimillion-dollar projects. Astronomy is going to march forward with these major projects, and he’s negotiated Canada to be at the table rather than to be out of the discussion.”
Fahlman has a wide range of research interests, Venn said, including “structure formation” — the study of how galaxies form and how black holes have evolved — and dark matter, which can be detected only from its gravitational influence.
Jim Hesser, director of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory and a colleague of Fahlman, said people at the observatory and other parts of the complex on Little Saanich Mountain have high regard for him.
“We were all very, very pleased that he received the Order of B.C. because he really has worked extremely hard and effectively during the decade he’s been in this position. Greg’s colleagues very, very, very deeply respect him.”
The Order of B.C., considered the highest honour the province can bestow on individuals, was launched in 1989. It has recognized 345 people for excellence in many fields of endeavour, from leadership and volunteerism to various professions.
Other 2013 winners are: Dr. Finley Armanious of Vernon (physician, fundraiser), Larry Berg of Richmond (leader in the development of Vancouver International Airport), Sergio Cocchia of West Vancouver (philanthropist in support of children’s charities), Dr. Paula Gordon of Vancouver (breast-cancer screening researcher), Wendy Grant-John of Vancouver (First Nations community leader), Arthur S. Hara of Vancouver (business leader dedicated to relations with the Asia Pacific region), Robert Ho of West Vancouver (philanthropist in support of health care and universities), George W. Hungerford of Vancouver (philanthropist in support of sport, health care and education), Charles J. Jago of Prince George (education and arts leader) and Dr. Charles H. Scudamore of Vancouver (cancer researcher and transplant surgeon).
Another recipient was Christopher Gaze of Vancouver, a cultural leader known for founding the Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, who accepted his 2012 award after being unable to attend last year’s presentations.
Nominations details for the Order of B.C. are at orderofbc.gov.bc.ca.
