Albert A. Michelson

Albert Abraham Michelson FRS FRAS
Michelson in 1907
Born	(1852-12-19)December 19, 1852 Strelno, Province of Posen, Kingdom of Prussia (now Strzelno, Poland)
Died	May 9, 1931(1931-05-09) (aged 78) Pasadena, California, U.S.
Alma mater	United States Naval Academy University of Berlin
Known for	Speed of light Fine structure Michelson–Morley experiment Michelson–Gale–Pearson experiment Michelson interferometer Michelson stellar interferometer
Spouses	Margaret Hemingway ​ ​ (m. 1877; div. 1898)​ Edna Stanton ​ (m. 1899)​
Children	6
Awards	Rumford Prize (1888) Matteucci Medal (1903) Copley Medal (1907) Nobel Prize in Physics (1907) Elliott Cresson Medal (1912) Henry Draper Medal (1916) Albert Medal (1920) Gold Medal of RAS (1923) Franklin Medal (1923) Duddell Medal and Prize (1929)
Scientific career
Fields	Physics
Institutions	Case Western Reserve University Clark University University of Chicago
Doctoral advisor	Hermann von Helmholtz
Other academic advisors	Georg Hermann Quincke[1] Marie Alfred Cornu[1]
Doctoral students	Robert Millikan William Smythe
Military career
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Navy United States Navy Reserve [2]
Service years	1873–1881; 1918–1921[2]
Rank	Commander
Unit	United States Naval Academy
Signature

Albert Abraham Michelson FRS FRAS (surname pronunciation anglicized as Michael-son; December 19, 1852 – May 9, 1931) was a German-American physicist known for his work on measuring the speed of light and especially for the Michelson–Morley experiment. In 1907, he received the Nobel Prize in Physics, becoming the first American to win the Nobel Prize in a science. He was the founder and the first head of the physics departments of Case School of Applied Science (now Case Western Reserve University) and the University of Chicago.^[3][4][5]