Theodore Y. Wu, 1924–2023

Theodore Y. Wu (PhD '52), professor of engineering science, emeritus, passed away on December 16. He was 99 years old.

Theodore Wu Credit: Caltech

Wu was born in a village in Changzhou, China, in 1924, and moved around the country with his family as his father worked for the government on a railroad nationalization program. The Japanese occupation during WWII caused hardship for many in China, including Wu's family, but the sight of Japanese aircraft is said to have inspired Wu's interest in aeronautics.

He earned his bachelor's degree in aeronautics from Chiao-Tung University, Shanghai, China, in 1946 and his master's degree, also in aeronautics, at Iowa State University in 1948. At Caltech, he studied under Paco Lagerstrom, professor of applied mathematics, and earned his PhD in aeronautics and mathematics in 1952. He was hired as a research fellow at the Institute upon graduation and became an assistant professor in applied mechanics in 1955. He was made full professor in 1961 and continued working in that position in Engineering Science until his retirement in 1996.

Theodore Wu (at center) with a group that included (from left to right) George Yates (MS '72, PhD '77), who became the head of Wu's wave mechanics lab; Allen Chwang (PhD '71), who was later a professor at the University of Iowa and the University of Hong Kong; Chris Brennen, the Richard L. and Dorothy M. Hayman Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus; John Blake, who went on to become professor of applied mathematics at the University of Birmingham; Milton Plesset, professor of engineering science at Caltech from 1951-1978; and Howard Winet, who was a research engineer in Wu's bioengineering lab. Credit: Caltech

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Theodore Wu (at center) with a group that included (from left to right) George Yates (MS '72, PhD '77), who became the head of Wu's wave mechanics lab; Allen Chwang (PhD '71), who was later a professor at the University of Iowa and the University of Hong Kong; Chris Brennen, the Richard L. and Dorothy M. Hayman Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus; John Blake, who went on to become professor of applied mathematics at the University of Birmingham; Milton Plesset, professor of engineering science at Caltech from 1951-1978; and Howard Winet, who was a research engineer in Wu's bioengineering lab.

Credit: Caltech

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Wu's research was interdisciplinary, combining aspects of aeronautics, mathematics, and fluid physics, and it was wide ranging, covering topics that included the physics of jets and wakes, the energy of ocean currents and wind, ocean waves, the flight of birds and insects, how fish swim, and the locomotion of microorganisms.

Among the awards and honors Wu received are the Caltech Distinguished Teaching Award, a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, an Australian CSIRO and Universities Fellowship, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Fellowship, the Fluid Mechanics Prize, and the von Kármán Medal. His contributions were recognized with lifetime achievement awards from the Chinese–American Faculty Association of Southern California in 1993; the Chinese Engineers and Scientists Association of Southern California in 1995; the North American Chiao Tung University Alumni Association (CTUAA) in 2000; and the CTUAA of Southern California in 2006.

He was a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, the Academia Sinica (Taiwan), a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, an honorary fellow of the Institute of Mechanics, and a fellow of the American Physical Society. Other memberships include Chinese Engineers and Scientists Association of Southern California (CESASC); and the Phi Tau Phi Scholastic Honor Society.

Wu was pre-deceased by his wife Dr. Chin-Hua Wu (2015). He is survived by his children Fonda B. Wu and his wife Sandy Chang, and Melba B. Wu and husband Michael C. Bush, and grandchildren Martin Bush, Matthew Bush and his wife Lisa Gano, and great-grandson Maceo Bush.

In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes contributions to the Theodore Y. Wu Graduate Fellowship. Memorial gifts may be made online here or checks may be mailed to Theodore Y. Wu Graduate Fellowship c/o Caltech, Advancement and Alumni Relations, PO Box 102963, Pasadena, CA. 91189-2963.

A full obituary will be posted at a later date.