Sydney Chapman 1888”1970: A centennial celebration

January 29, 1988, marked the centenary of the birth of Sydney Chapman, and few of those who knew him would have been surprised if he had lived to celebrate the occasion. He was slightly built but had prodigious intellectual and physical abilities that were undiminished even into his 80s. The only sign of his advancing years was a slight deafness that might well have been the result of the many hours he spent in the swimming pool: He swam half a mile every day until within a few days of his death.