physics

Wolfgang Baumjohann

Wolfgang Baumjohann is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Wolfgang Baumjohann rather than just read about it. In short: Wolfgang Baumjohann (born August 9, 1950) is an Austrian astrophysicist and academic. He was the director of the Institute of Space Research at the Austrian Academy of Sciences from 2004 to 2021.

Key takeaways

Wolfgang Baumjohann belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Wolfgang Baumjohann to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Wolfgang Baumjohann from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Wolfgang Baumjohann (born August 9, 1950) is an Austrian astrophysicist and academic. He was the director of the Institute of Space Research at the Austrian Academy of Sciences from 2004 to 2021.

Education and career Baumjohann studied physics and geophysics at Münster University from 1969 to 1975, earning his doctorate in 1981 and working as a research assistant there until 1983. He became director of the Institute of Space Research in Graz in 2004, succeeding Hans Sünkel. He had joined the institute in 2001 as Riedler's successor and was also an adjunct professor at LMU Munich and an honorary professor at Graz University of Technology. He received the Austrian Decoration for Science and Art award, in 2007. In April 2022, Baumjohann was elected to the position of president of the Mathematical and Natural Sciences Class within the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Wolfgang Baumjohann

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Wolfgang Baumjohann claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Wolfgang Baumjohann before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Wolfgang Baumjohann ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Wolfgang Baumjohann

In research: Wolfgang Baumjohann appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Wolfgang Baumjohann in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Wolfgang Baumjohann is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1950 births, Academic staff of LMU Munich, Academic staff of the Graz University of Technology, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Wolfgang Baumjohann outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Wolfgang Baumjohann in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Wolfgang Baumjohann means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Wolfgang Baumjohann out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Wolfgang Baumjohann in simple terms?

Wolfgang Baumjohann (born August 9, 1950) is an Austrian astrophysicist and academic. He was the director of the Institute of Space Research at the Austrian Academy of Sciences from 2004 to 2021.

Why does Wolfgang Baumjohann matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Wolfgang Baumjohann?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Wolfgang Baumjohann.