O B I T U A R Y

Furth was pioneer in fusion

Princeton NJ -- Princeton professor emeritus Harold Furth, a pioneer in the U.S. fusion program and the originator of the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor project, died Feb. 21 in Philadelphia at the age of 72. The cause of death was heart failure.

"Harold was a giant of fusion science, a person of untiring energy and boundless optimism. He buoyed all of us," said Rob Goldston, director of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. "Harold led the U.S. fusion program to tremendous growth in the 1970s and 1980s. Indeed, many of the scientific accomplishments even in the 1990s are the result of his leadership. We will all miss him."

Harold Furth

Furth conducted research on controlled fusion, making countless contributions to the science of fusion plasmas (hot, ionized gases) and the fundamentals of plasma physics. He provided scientific and managerial leadership to the world fusion program throughout his career.

In the early 1970s, Furth conceived the Tokamak project, the most advanced and highest performance fusion device ever constructed in the United States. He served as director of the PPPL from 1981 to 1990, during which time the project was launched. The machine operated for 14 years, producing world record-setting and major scientific results before closing down in 1997.

A native of Vienna, Furth came to the United States in 1941. He received a Ph.D. in physics from Harvard University in 1960 and worked on controlled magnetic fusion research at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory (now the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) in California prior to joining the PPPL in 1967 and being appointed professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton. He co-headed the Experimental Division at the laboratory from 1967 to 1978, when he was appointed associate director and head of the research department at the PPPL. He was program director in 1980-81.

A fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a member of the National Academy of Sciences, Furth served on the Board on Physics and Astronomy of the National Research Council's Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics and Resources. He received the E.O. Lawrence Memorial Award from the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission in 1974, the James Clerk Maxwell Prize in Plasma Physics from the American Physical Society in 1983, and the Delmer Fahrney Medal from the Committee on Science and the Arts of the Franklin Institute in 1992.

Furth held more than 20 patents and published more than 200 technical papers. In addition, he served on committees and panels for the Department of Energy, the Department of Defense, NASA, the National Academy of Sciences, and other scientific and technical organizations, as well as on various advisory committees for organizations such as the Max Planck Gesellschaft.

In 1999, the year he became professor emeritus of astrophysical sciences, Furth said, "It is very good to imagine things, but actually to do things and get results that make scientific sense is a solemn and inspiring path." He was active in research at the PPPL until shortly before his death.

Survivors include his wife, Christiane Ludescher, of Princeton; and his son, John Furth, of New York City. Memorial contributions may be made to: Princeton Senior Resource Center, Spruce Circle, Princeton, NJ 08540; or Womanspace, 1212 Stuyvesant Ave., Trenton, NJ 08618.