Tribol Lett (2010) 37:101 DOI 10.1007/s11249-009-9542-3

OBITUARY

Paul Fleischauer (1942–2009)

Published online: 17 November 2009 Ó Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2009

It is with deep regret that we announce the passing of Paul Fleischauer, a founder member of the Editorial Board of Tribology Letters, on October 7, 2009. Paul was born in Buffalo, New York, obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Wesleyan University in Connecticut and a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Southern California. Subsequently, he carried out post-doctoral work at the University of Rome, Italy. He started work thereafter for The Aerospace Corporation in El Segundo, California, where he remained for the rest of his career. While at The Aerospace Corporation, Paul was instrumental in building a leading group in space and aerospace tribology, which published numerous papers over the years in Tribology Letters. In 1991, he was awarded the Trustees’ Distinguished Achievement award, the highest technical

achievement award at Aerospace, for his work in tribology. Paul was widely respected in both the aerospace industry and the academic community. He was always an ardent supporter of Tribology Letters from its inception and attended Editorial Board meetings on a regular basis. The support of leaders in the field of tribology such as Paul were instrumental in the growth and success of this journal. Paul retired as the Principal Director of the Space Materials Laboratory at The Aerospace Corporation in 2004 after 35 years of service. However, even after his retirement, Paul remained active in solving space tribological issues, kept his position as Editorial Board member and continued to review for Tribology Letters. He will be sorely missed.

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