Life Summary

Cultural Advice

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website contains names, images, and voices of deceased persons.

In addition, some articles contain terms or views that were acceptable within mainstream Australian culture in the period in which they were written, but may no longer be considered appropriate.

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Older articles are being reviewed with a view to bringing them into line with contemporary values but the original text will remain available for historical context.

Name	Sir Richard Van Der Riet Woolley
Born	24 April, 1906 Weymouth, Dorset, England
Died	24 December, 1986 (aged 80) Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa
Cultural Heritage	English South African Includes subject's nationality; their parents' nationality; the countries in which they spent a significant part of their childhood, and their self-identity.
Related Entries	[View as tree] O'Connell, Daniel Joseph Kelly (friend) Coombs, Herbert Cole (friend) Downing, Richard Ivan (friend) Allen, Clabon Walter (work colleague) Bowen, Edward George (colleague)
Occupation or Descriptor *	astronomer (1939-1956) Australian Capital Territory, Australia public service head (1939-1956) Australian Capital Territory, Australia academic (1950-1955) Australian Capital Territory, Australia astronomer (1957-1976) Overseas

* Dates are approximate