Niels Bohr 07 October 1885 - 18 November 1962

  • Birth of Niels Henrik David Bohr

    Birth of Niels Henrik David Bohr
    Bohr was born in Copenhagen on October 7, 1885. His family consisted of his father, Christian Bohr who was a Professor of Physiology, his mother, Ellen Adler, older sister and younger brother. His father was an eminent physiologist and was largely responsible for awakening his interest in physics while still at school, his mother came from a family distinguished in the field of education. Niels was destined to be bright.
  • Bohr Model

    Bohr Model
    Bohr's proposal was that an atom had a positively charged center and was orbited by specific layers of electrons. He also believed that the atoms would either give off or absorb energy when electrons moved from layer to layer.
  • Period: to

    Lectureships in Physics

    Niels Bohr held lectureships in physics at the University of Copenhagen and the Victoria University in Manchester. In 1916, he was appointed professor of theoretical physics at the University of Copenhagen, and in 1920, he became head of their Institute for Theoretical Physics. Though he retained this title for the rest of his life, the impact of World War II would pull Bohr away from the physical position.
  • Niels Bohr Institute Opens

    Niels Bohr Institute Opens
    Located in Denmark Bohr established the Institute for Theoretical Physics so that the younger generation of physicists could propose fresh ideas.
  • Nobel Lecture

    Nobel Lecture
    Niels Bohr delivered the Nobel lecture on the structure of the atom and later awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his services in the investigation of the structure of atoms and the radiation emanating from them.
  • Announces the Discovery of Fission

    Announces the Discovery of Fission
    At the 5th Washington Conference on Theoretical Physics at the George Washington University, Bohr publicly announced the splitting of the uranium atom in terms of the isotope 235. Resulting "fission" with its release of two hundred million electron volts of energy starting the beginning of the atomic age.
    Fission Video
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHCJFpMFlVE
  • Death of Bohr

    Death of Bohr
    Died at age 77 in Copenhagen at home following a stroke.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPCGXCjZet8