Nikolai Yegorovich Zhukovsky

Nikolai Yegorovich Zhukovsky – a Russian scientist and mechanician, the founder of hydro- and aerodynamics. Zhukovsky is called "the father of Russian aviation." Nikolai Zhukovsky was born in the village of Orekhovo near Vladimir. His father was a highly educated military engineer; his grandfather was an officer in the Russian army and a participant in the Patriotic War of 1812. He graduated from the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of Moscow University in 1868 with a specialization in applied mathematics, and began teaching in 1870. In 1876 he defended his master's thesis, and in 1882 he received the degree of Doctor of Applied Mathematics.

 

From 1885 Zhukovsky taught theoretical mechanics at Moscow University. Under his guidance, in 1902 one of the first aerodynamic wind tunnels in Europe was built in the university's mechanical laboratory. In 1904 he established the first aerodynamic institute in Europe in Kuchino near Moscow. During World War I Zhukovsky worked on ballistics and the theory of bombing. After the October Revolution he actively participated in the creation of the Soviet aviation industry. In December 1918, at his initiative, the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) was established, which he headed. Nikolai Yegorovich Zhukovsky died on March 17, 1921 in Moscow. His scientific works laid the foundations of aerodynamics as a scientific discipline and had a tremendous influence on the development of aviation.