Professor Thanu Padmanabhan, known affectionately as Paddy, passed away on September 17, 2021, at the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune, India. He held various faculty positions at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, India, from 1980, before moving to IUCAA in 1992, where he stayed till his untimely demise. In his illustrious career spanning more than four decades, Paddy contributed significantly to a broad spectrum of topics related to astrophysics, cosmology and classical and quantum aspects of gravitation.
An important and distinguishing feature of Paddy’s career has been his conscious effort towards writing textbooks aimed at students at different levels. He has also authored many popular science articles and books which have motivated students to pursue research in physics. He leaves behind an intellectual legacy of the highest calibre and will remain in our memories forever.
A detailed description of his biography is available in the URL below.
Sumanta Chakraborty, IACS, Kolkata, India
Sudipta Sarkar, IIT Gandhinagar, India