FPN03-02

In Memoriam: Prof. M. Wakatani

January 10, 2003

The world fusion community mourns the untimely passing of Professor Masahiro Wakatani, Faculty of Energy Science, Kyoto University, Japan, who died of cerebral hemmorrhage on 9 January. Prof. Wakatani was well respected for his research on plasma physics and fusion. He was born May 15, 1945, Nara Prefecture, Japan; received a Bachelor's degree (1968) and Master's degree (1970), Department of Nuclear Engineering, Kyoto University and Ph.D. degree (1973), Department of Electronic Engineering, Kyoto University. His Ph.D. thesiswas on "Equilibrium and Stability of Toroidal Pinches"

He was a Research Associate, Division of Thermonuclear Research, Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (April 1973-January 1976); Research Associate, Institute of Plasma Physics, Nagoya University (January 1976-March 1978); Associate Professor (April 1978-June 1985) and Professor (1985-1997), Plasma Physics Laboratory, Kyoto University and Professor (1997-2003), Department of Fundamental Energy Science, Faculty of Energy Science, Kyoto University. He was also a Fellow of the American Physical Society, Division of Plasma Physics

Prof Wakatani was author of numerous published papers and several books. He was a visiting researcher at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Institute of Fusion Science/University of Texas in 1988. He also was organizer of many US-Japan workshops.

Developer of a well-known nonlinear model for drift waves (Hasegawa-Wakatani equation), Prof Wakatani was Co-Leader of the ITER Expert Group on Transport, and one of the editors of ITER Physics Basis (published as a special edition of Nuclear Fusion). Member of the ITPA Topical Group on Transport and ITB Physics.

He will be greatly missed.