Ph.D., University of Chicago, 1970

1944 - February 22, 2018

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Nolan received his PhD from the University of Chicago under the supervision of W.W. Morgan, followed by postdoctoral positions in Toronto and at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in La Serena. This allowed him to renew his links to the Latin American culture, to which he had strong ties, as he spent several years in Argentina as a child. After Cerro Tololo and a short stint at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, he joined the Space Telescope Science Institute in 1984, where he remained working until the very last moment.

He was a very active member of our community and a strong advocate of hot stars, to which he dedicated his professional life with true passion. He always found those objects extremely interesting, and anyone talking to him was immediately caught by his enthusiasm. His pioneering work on spectral properties and classification of hot, massive stars, both in the optical and ultraviolet, are a primary reference and his contributions set a high standard in the field. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, the IAU approved to name Minor Planet 25942 after him.