The Scientific Legacy of Beppo Occhialini: Formative Years and the Return to Italy in 1950

The thirtieth anniversary of the death of Beppo Occhialini, the cosmic-ray physicist associated among other things to the fundamental discoveries of the electron-positron pairs and of the pion thanks to his contributions to the development of the controlled cloud chamber and of new nuclear emulsions, is the occasion to publish his memoirs on the main events of his scientific life, which he dictated shortly before his death. This second edition of The Scientific Legacy of Beppo Occhialini takes us by the hand to appreciate the admiration if not the veneration he had for Patrick Blackett, the ironic rudeness of Lord Rutherford, or the troubled relationship with Cecil Powell. A particularly thorny aspect concerns the role played by some physicists during the Second World War and the way Occhialini elaborated the complex personal situations experienced by each of them. Occhialini’s memoirs are enriched by his short autobiography originally published as an encyclopedia entry in the 1970s. Aselection of relevant historical studies and personal reminiscences mainly concerning his scientific activity before his coming to Milan is reproposed, together with some personal notes from friends and colleagues.

Leonardo Gariboldi is a research fellow in the History of Physics and Physics Education at the University of Milan. His research interests concern the history of nineteenth and twentieth-century physics, particularly with regard to Aldo Pontremoli, Beppo Occhialini, and the CISE nuclear research center. He published with Springer “The Milan Institute of Physics: A Research Institute from Fascism to the Reconstruction”.

Massimo Gervasi is Associate Professor at University of Milano Bicocca, teaching Cosmic Ray Physics for the Master degree in Astrophysics; INFN and CERN associate; Degree in Physics and PhD in Astronomy at University La Sapienza, Rome; Research activity in Cosmic Microwave Background observations from ground and space, in Cosmic Rays observation from space (AMS on ISS), in Radiation environment and damage in Space.

Giorgio Sironi retired full professor of radioastronomy, 60 years of research on cosmic ray electrons, gamma radio astronomy, galactic radio emission, 3K background, equipment for space studies.

Aldo Treves graduated in Physics with Giuseppe Occhialini in 1968. Scientific and academic actiivity at University of Milan, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, SISSA, Trieste, University of Insubria, Como. Main subjects of research: Astrophysics of Collapsed Objects, theoretical aspects  and observations with space and ground based instrumentation.

Pasquale Tucci has been Professor of History of Physics at the Università degli Studi di Milano. He was the coeditor, together with Pietro Redondi, Giorgio Sironi, Guido Vegni, of the book The Scientific Legacy of Beppo Occhialini (Bologna: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2006). His last paper, written with Leonardo Gariboldi, is “Occhialini’s Memoirs” Giornale di Fisica (Supplemento) 2022 63: 1-73.