George Aristotle Economou Sr. (1924? - April 2, 2003) was an American optical systems expert who helped set up special cameras to photograph and study the first test of the atomic bomb in 1945. He was instrumental in development of the atomic bomb at Los Alamos, working under Robert Oppenheimer. He studied astronomy and astrophysics at Harvard. Economou built his first telescope at the age of 12.
Economou, officially retired in 1990 as Group Vice President, Optical Instruments for Contraves Goerz Corp. in O'Hara Twp, Pennsylvania, but continued to work on some of the industry's more high-profile projects.
He earned a Bachelor's in Astronomy from Harvard in 1944. He also worked at Polaroid Corp., a combination of experiences that attracted the attention of the military.
In 1944, Economou joined the Army and was assigned to the atomic bomb project at Los Alamos, New Mexico. On July 16, 1945, the team set up about 50 cameras to try to capture the first test, studying shock waves and other factors.
Economou helped conceptualize the design of a 27-foot-diameter mirror for the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan in Hawaii.
He had intended to die on a palindrome, April 4, 2004 (4/02/04), after his 80th birthday, but he was euthanized at Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA, on April 2, 2003, at the age of 79 at the request of the hospital and at the consent of his family. Ironically, the doctors who administered the euthanasia were the parents of one of his son's childhood friends.
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