Last days of Prof.P.Devdas “He was active even during the last phase of his life and took part in all seminars on astronomy. In 2006 March Devdas was hospitalized for 5days . Another motorist had caused serious vehicle accident, while he was going to a conference. Although he suffered no serious lasting injury,his hearing was impaired He had missed the 2005 Mars opposition and was looking forward to the next, but in fact his final observations of the Red Planet were made in 2003. When he was 91 years old, a 14-inch telescope on the terrace, a five-inch one in the study, and copies of Amateur Astronomer’s Handbook and Understanding Earth comprised Devadas’ universe. Helped in his old age by Komala,Devdas died on 18 December 2015 at 92 years of age. Legacy Now his daughter ,Komala Murugesan which was co-auther for some of his papers ably carries forward his work . She not only continued his firm,’Devdas Telescoptics’,but arranges star parties for various orga...
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I first met Shri Devadas with my late father Dr PD Venkatakrishnan, MBBS, DPH, MF Hom (Lond)., in 1986, at the time of the apparition of comet Halley. It was a cloudy evening. We waited for long only to end-up viewing the take off and landing of flights at the Chennai airport, situated in the western direction of his residence. He told me to observe planet Saturn. It was in the constellation of Scorpious back then, in 1987. Indeed, planet saturn was a spectacle to observe ! Even today (in the days of space telescopes, spaceprobes, and the internet) nothing can match the beauty of planet saturn when observed through a small telescope. It is the first direct indicator of the resolving power of a small telescope ! He was an avid self-made Astronomer who made telescopes, grinding glass blanks with his own hands in his backyard, who later established an engineering firm manufacturing small to medium sized telescopes f...
Dr.V.Anand writes a blog "Astrodentist".There he says, I first met Shri Devadas with my late father Dr PD Venkatakrishnan, in 1986, at the time of the apparition of comet Halley. He told me to observe planet Saturn. Indeed, planet saturn was a spectacle to observe ! Even today (in the days of space telescopes, spaceprobes, and the internet) nothing can match the beauty of planet saturn when observed through a small telescope. It is the first direct indicator of the resolving power of a small telescope ! He was an avid self-made Astronomer who made telescopes, grinding glass blanks with his own hands in his backyard, who later established an engineering firm manufacturing small to medium sized telescopes for the use of the interested common man. His equatorially mounted sturdy reflector telescopes are there in every nook and corner of this vast country. His telescopes are in Surendranagar, Gujarat as well as in Calcu...