Hubert Curien, crystallographer, former French minister of research and space, and leader of space policy, died of heart failure at his country residence in Loury, France, on 6 February 2005.
The son of a city tax collector and an elementary school director, Hubert was born on 30 October 1924 in Cornimont, a small village in the Vosges region of France. With his fine sense of humor, he always referred to his origins: “Vosgians are determined; some say they are hardheaded, but they are not complicated and they believe in fundamental values.” All those who have known him would easily admit that he was a Vosgian!
Hubert passed the entrance examinations of the two most prestigious grandes écoles in France—the École Polytechnique and the École Normale Supérieure. Choosing ENS, he studied the physical sciences and received his diploma in 1948 for work on the diffusion of x rays by liquids, methyl iodide in particular. In 1951 he received his doctorate from the University of Paris for the study of elastic waves and thermal diffusion of x rays in crystals.
His research work included the theory of Compton diffusion of x rays by crystals, dipolar defects in lithium fluoride, and the phase diagram of gallium. He discovered three metastable phases of gallium (β, γ, and δ) and established their crystalline structure. His later work concerned the application of group theory in crystallography, twinning, and the theoretical representation of associations of crystals. In recognition, his name was given to the mineral “curienite,” discovered in 1968.
In 1956, he was appointed professor at the University of Paris where he taught mineralogy and crystallography until 1994. Teaching was always an essential activity for him.
In parallel with his teaching, he occupied several key positions of responsibility: director general of CNRS in 1973, general delegate to Scientific and Technical Research from 1973 to 1976, president of the Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES) from 1976 to 1984, and president of the council of the European Space Agency (ESA) from 1981 until 1984. At that time, he was called by President François Mitterrand and Prime Minister Laurent Fabius to become minister of research and technology, a position he held from 1984 to 1986 and, later, from 1988 to 1993, when he was also minister of space. In addition to being a member or head of numerous national and international scientific societies, Hubert occupied many other prestigious roles, including founder of the European Science Foundation (ESF), its president from 1979 to 1984, and president of the French Academy of Sciences from 2001 to 2003.
As research minister, Hubert maintained a high priority for research in the successive governments that he participated in. Public-science budgets increased from 1984 to 1986, and grew in absolute terms by 15% between 1988 and 1993. While Hubert was at CNES and was minister for research and space, France achieved a remarkable record of successes, including the first launch of the Ariane rocket, which granted Europe its independent access to space, and the beginning of the series of SPOT ( Satellite Probatoire d’Observation de la Terre) satellites for the observation of Earth and also military observation and reconnaissance through the French Helios program. Those successes led him to initiate the first commercial space companies in Europe: Arianespace for the Ariane launcher and Spotimage for Earth observation data.
At the January 1985 ministerial meeting of the ESA council, Hubert, a born diplomat, spared no effort in negotiating the final consensus to increase the ESA science budget in real terms by 5% every year for 10 years. That decision made it possible to continue the Giotto comet mission, Ulysses, and the European contribution to the Hubble Space Telescope , and to launch numerous ambitious projects, including Hipparcos, XMM-Newton, INTEGRAL, Rosetta, and the Huygens probe on board Cassini. The growth and success of ESA activities are by no means coincidental; with his unique and pragmatic approach to the management of programs, Hubert led and oriented space research as nobody before him.
Hubert has left a clear mark on the history of Europe and on its success in science and technology. As minister, he helped initiate the Eureka program, which aimed to develop key technologies for the benefit of Europe and its industry. Even though his actions were inspired by the strong desire to give Europe its rightful place between the two superpowers of the time, the US and the Soviet Union, he was concerned with maintaining the best relationships with them. With the Soviets, he negotiated the flight of the first French cosmonaut, Jean-Loup Chrétien, in 1982, and with the Americans, the 1985 flight of his fellow astronaut, Patrick Baudry, on the space shuttle. In 1992, Hubert was awarded the COSPAR (Committee on Space Research) International Cooperation Medal for his significant contributions to the promotion of international scientific cooperation.
He often said that to manage space programs you had to keep your feet on the ground. With his feet on the ground, he nevertheless contemplated with childlike enthusiasm the prospects of sending human beings to Mars. Asked why he would support such an initiative, he responded, “Oh, pour le sport.”
Hubert’s profound dedication to science and to human relations explains the unique quality of the links that he established with all his partners, colleagues, and friends. We mourn a great man and a great friend, one who always made the time and effort to advise and assist in transforming difficulties into successes by making just, inspired, and sound decisions. With his exceptional blend of humanism and realism, Hubert attracted great respect from the political world. His great simplicity is a lesson for all those who have, or will have, responsibilities in managing people and large programs.
