Birth of Tateos Agekian (May 12, 1913)

Tateos Agekian was a Soviet astrophysicist of Armenian descent and one of the pioneers of Russian and world stellar dynamics.  

He was born to an Armenian family in Batum (Georgia) on May 12, 1913. After graduating from Leningrad University in 1938, he began to work as a schoolteacher. His postgraduate studies were interrupted due to World War II. He participated in the war as chief of staff of an artillery regiment. After the end of the war, he returned to Leningrad (nowadays St. Petersburg) and worked at the department of Stellar Astronomy of Leningrad University. He earned his first doctorate in Physical and Mathematical Sciences in 1947 and his second doctorate in 1960, earning later the title of professor. He was the head of the Laboratory of Stellar Dynamics and Celestial Mechanics of the Astronomical Institute of St. Petersburg University. He died on January 16, 2006, in Saint Petersburg. 

Agekian was one of the pioneers of stellar dynamics. Most of his work relates to the application of methods of mathematical statistics and theory of random processes to stellar astronomy. Developing the theory of stellar encounters, he discovered the probability of encounters with a given velocity change and studied their effect. He gave an exhaustive analysis of the interaction between stars and gas clouds. The results obtained provided a possible explanation for the increase in stellar speed with age.  

In May 1972, T. M. Smirnova discovered asteroid 3862 in the main belt at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory. The asteroid was named after Agekian.