Kukarkin, Boris Vasil’evich

Boris V. Kukarkin was a Soviet (Russian) astronomer known for his contributions to studies of variable stars and globular star clusters. In conjunction with his colleague Pavel P. Parenago, his work on the distribution and kinematics of various types of stars, including variable stars, led to the recognition that our Milky Way Galaxy is an aggregate of subsystems, each of which has its own distinctive features. This evidence has strongly supported the currently held view that the Galaxy has evolved through a host of acquisitions and mergers composed of these smaller subsystems ([Editorial Board], Astronomicheskii Zhurnal 55(1): 202–204, 1978a; [Editorial Board], Soviet Astronomy 22(1): 119–121, 1978b; Kulikovski and Samus, Priroda 5:101–108, 1980; Samus and Rastorguev, Boris Vasilyevich Kukarkin (1909–1977). In Variable Stars, the Galactic Halo and Galaxy Formation. Proceedings of an International Conference Held in Zvenigorod, Russia, 12–16 October 2009, 3–11. Moscow: Sternberg Astronomical Institute of Lomonosov Moscow University, 2010).