Neal Boyd Brown, 82, died Monday, July 19, 2021, at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., following a brief illness
Neal was born Dec. 13, 1938, in Moscow, the son of Kenneth Wayne Brown and Ruth Alvina (Boyd) Brown. Growing up on the family farm, he learned how to build and fix almost anything mechanical and electrical with whatever was handy, a skill he used — and taught — throughout his life and which earned him his Eagle Scout ranking in the Boy Scouts. From an early age, Neal said his parents nurtured his curiosity to become a lifelong learner. It was Neal’s curiosity, his love of life, and the joy, laughter and kindness he so eagerly, enthusiastically and generously shared with all who knew him that is his greatest legacy.
Neal graduated from Pullman High School, Class of 1957, in Pullman. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Washington State University in physics, a master’s in geophysics from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks and, later, was bestowed an honorary doctorate from UAF for his many career contributions, leadership and service to both the University of Alaska and the state of Alaska.
Neal spent most of his professional life studying, photographing and teaching about the aurora borealis, or northern lights. Seeing them first in 1962 during a NASA research posting in Thule, Greenland, the “lights in the sky” were a source of delight and wonder for him throughout his 18 years (1971-89) supervising and directing UAF’s Poker Flat Research Range, the world’s first and only scientific rocket launching facility owned by a university. The aurora continued to inspire him as he was asked to take on the position of director for Alaska Space Grant from 2002-08. In that role, he most enjoyed working with Alaskan teachers and remote communities to offer STEM education summer field camps to young Alaskans, emphasizing outreach to underserved, rural and Indigenous learners. In between building and launching model rockets, his young students explored Alaskan lakes with remote fish finders, simulating the exploration for life on distant planets by NASA remote sensors.
After retirement, he continued to teach about Alaskan science and the aurora to both academic and public audiences whenever asked as the founder and chief scientist of Alaska Science Explained.
Neal’s ease in explaining complex scientific concepts to public audiences, his charismatic, gentle and kind character, and his wonderful storytelling made him a frequent guest for interviews on National Public Radio and other national and international media outlets. He has also appeared in several videos that showcase one of his proudest co-creations with his colleagues Tom Hallinan and Dan Osborne, the Aurora Color Television Project — a first, broadcast-quality, color television footage of the aurora created in 2008. Not only did he love the complexity and beauty of outdoor photography, he also loved to teach others how to both photograph and film the northern lights and other natural phenomena. He spent times as a mentor to others while he continued learning as much as he could to keep up with the rapidly evolving technology of digital cameras and camera-carrying drones. These ideas were woven into his teaching about the aurora, science, rockets and space whenever asked, be it at a local school or Osher Lifelong Learning programs and community groups in Alaska, New Hampshire, Vermont and more. He also spent countless Alaskan summers giving lectures on the aurora borealis to audiences from around the world at Camp Denali, a wilderness lodge in Alaska’s Denali National Park. He often joked he spent his life “learning about things over his head.”
In addition to his curiosity about the Alaskan night sky, the aurora, space science and photography, Neal was an avid genealogist and ham radio operator. Both activities let him share connections, ideas, and his joy of learning and discovery with people around the world. He spent more than 20 years researching the lives of not only his family, but the entire families of his children’s spouses, finding historical relationships and family stories many had never known. Through ham radio, he enjoyed being part of a world connecting people through electronics and stories.
And no story about Neal Brown would be complete without noting his love of the movie “Star Wars” — a movie of space exploration, good triumphing over evil, and connections across the universe. He and his children watched the original together more than 20 times when it first came out in 1977, and Neal not only made his own Darth Vader costume that year for Halloween, he also built a moving, beeping, rotating R2D2. He wore his costume and brought R2D2 to visit classrooms, local parades and community parties whenever asked for many years to come. Star Wars movie clips, quotes and theater visits with friends and family to watch the sequels brought him immense joy.
His generosity in sharing knowledge, creating fun and experiencing wonder knew no bounds. As all who ever met him knew, a simple conversation on the street might lead to years of correspondence and the sharing of ideas, jokes, family events and more. He loved connecting people to one another and seeing the good in everyone, maintaining his many friendships through regular letters, emails, social media postings and phone calls, as well as old-fashioned visits for lunch or dinner whenever he was nearby.
With all his work and hobbies, however, Neal’s first and foremost love was, and always will be, for his wife of 40 years, Fran Tannian, and their family. He loved to surprise Fran with bouquets of fresh flowers, often daisies, and adored the quiet time they spent with their little bichon frise, Molly, watching birds outside their window and catching up on their day. He also loved to dance with Fran, travel with her, share jokes with her and spend time appreciating how well they took care of one another as they both got older. For his children, grandchildren and extended family, he was a daily presence in letters, emails, photo sharing and social media. He loved connecting them to one another, keeping them updated about each other’s lives, and making sure birthdays, anniversaries and life events were remembered and celebrated. Few days went by that he would not send cartoons, newspaper stories, pictures and books to each of them, sometimes in duplicate, whenever he found something he thought they would like. He kept the U.S. Post Office busy each week with multiple mailings to family and his social media posts updated for both family and friends.
After enjoying more than 55 years living in Alaska, Neal and Fran moved closer to his daughter and her family in East Thetford, Vt., in the fall of 2019. Neal and Fran immediately made a community of new friends around themselves and, though they missed Alaska, were actively enjoying their lives at the Woodlands retirement community in Lebanon, N.H. Neal not only kept up his public lectures, storytelling, photography and family updates, he took great joy recently in learning how to draw and had filled several notebooks with sketches and paintings. He also had started teaching model rocket classes to fellow Woodlands residents.
Neal leaves behind his wife, Fran Tannian, and the children of his first marriage, with their spouses, Kristopher David Brown and Rachel Moritt Brown, of New York City; Melody Brown Burkins and Derek Burkins, of East Thetford, Vt.; and Nathaniel Scott Brown and Tina Tsiakalis-Brown, of Seattle. He also leaves his stepchildren, Steven Ross Sweet, of Reno, Nev.; and Michael Scott Sweet, of Boston, Mass. And he leaves six wonderful grandchildren who adored their Grandpa/Papou Brown: Ari Moritt Brown and Noa Moritt Brown, of New York City; Riley Logan Burkins and Porter Brown Burkins, of East Thetford; and Zacharias Tsiakalis-Brown and Michael Tsiakalis-Brown, of Seattle.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the University of Alaska’s Museum of the North.
