Printer friendly version

Paxton memorial service on Monday

A memorial service for Laboratory retiree Hugh C. Paxton, 94, will be held at 1 p.m., Monday in Fuller Lodge in Los Alamos. Paxton died Dec. 25, 2003 in Albuquerque.

A California native, Paxton moved to Los Alamos in 1948, where he joined the Laboratory as leader of the critical assemblies group. By the time he retired in 1976, Paxton was one of the world's foremost experts in criticality safety.

Paxton's influence on criticality safety continued following his retirement. In the late 1990s, along with Norm Pruvost, who worked with Paxton at Technical Area 18, Paxton edited the Nuclear Criticality Safety Guide, which is a bible of sorts for researchers who conduct experiments where near criticality is a concern.

Paxton earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a doctorate in physics from the UC, Berkeley, studying under E.O. Lawrence.

Other Headlines