The AEM Department Mourns the Loss of Professor Emeritus Robert Plunkett

 

Professor Emeritus Robert Plunkett passed away in April shortly after celebrating his 100th birthday. Professor Plunkett was a member of the AEM faculty from 1960 until 1988. He was internationally known for his research in vibrations and his experimental measurements of mechanical behavior of materials. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1974. He was very active in the ASME where he held several national offices. Professor Plunkett originally came from New York City and attended MIT where he received all of his degrees. He served as an officer in the United States Army in Northwest Europe during World War II. Before joining the faculty at the University of Minnesota, Professor Plunkett was the resident expert on vibration at the General Electric Research Labs. As a faculty member at the University of Minnesota, he was active in teaching at both the graduate and undergraduate levels and supervised the research of numerous Master's and PhD students. After he retired he and his wife Katy moved to Austin, Texas, where he was living at the time he passed away. He is survived by three children Chris, Brian, and Peggy as well as several grandchildren.

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