Peter Millman

Peter Millman, born on August 10, 1906, was a distinguished Canadian astronomer and meteoriticist whose career spanned several decades and significant contributions to the field of astronomy.

Millman's journey in astronomy began during his graduate studies at Harvard University, where he was inspired by Harlow Shapley in 1929 to undertake a systematic study of meteor spectra. This foundational work would follow him throughout his scientific career, culminating in notable observational campaigns.

In 1946, Millman organized a successful observational campaign that coincided with a spectacular shower of the Giacobinids, which provided many important photographic spectra. His expertise led him to the David Dunlap Observatory, where he worked from 1933 until 1940, before enlisting with the Royal Canadian Air Force in early 1941.

After the war, he joined the Dominion Observatory in Ottawa in 1946 and later became the chair of Project Second Storey, an interdepartmental committee on unidentified flying objects, from 1952 to 1954. Millman was skeptical of the extraterrestrial origins of UFOs, viewing the project as a misallocation of resources.

In 1955, he transferred to the National Research Council as the head of upper atmospheric research. His contributions to the field were recognized with the J. Lawrence Smith Medal in 1954, and in honor of his work, a crater on Mars and the minor planet 2904 Millman were named after him.