Sir Bernard Lovell Dies at 98; a Radio Telescope Bears His Name

Sir Bernard Lovell, a pioneer in radar and radio telescopes from the days when the technology helped save Britain in World War II until the beginning of the space age, died August 6 at his home in Swettenham Village, England. He was 98.

Lovell, who became widely known through his books, lectures and BBC television appearances, was especially renowned for creating the Jodrell Bank radio telescope, the only antenna that could track rockets in space in the early years of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union.

On Oct. 4, 1957 — just two months after the Jodrell Bank telescope began operating — the Soviets launched Sputnik atop an R-7 rocket that had been designed to deliver a nuclear warhead, and Western officials turned to Mr. Lovell and his telescope to track it. Sputnik emitted a radio signal that made it easy to follow, but only Mr. Lovell’s radio telescope could track the rocket that put Sputnik into orbit. When the battery in Sputnik that powered the radio signal ran out after 22 days, even the Soviets had to turn to Jodrell Bank for help in tracking it as it finished its three months of orbiting before falling back to Earth.