Nicholas Sanduleak
- May 7, 1990
- 56 years
- cardiac arrest, heart attack
About Nicholas Sanduleak
Nicholas Sanduleak, 56, American astronomer, cardiac arrest, heart attack.
Explore other notable deaths in 1990 or deaths in May 1990.
The Deaths Archive presents
How well do you know Nicholas Sanduleak?
Explore their life. Test your knowledge. Beat the challenge.
10 questions · One legacy · How much do you really know?
Challenge your friends
Play together in real-time.
Full Biography
|Nicholas Sanduleak (Romanian: Nicolae Sanduleac June 22, 1933 in Lackawanna, New York, United States – May 7, 1990) was an American astronomer.
Biography
Sanduleak's parents were born in Romania. His family moved to Cleveland soon after he was born, where Sanduleak did undergraduate work at the Case Institute of Technology, receiving a B.S. in 1956. After serving in the Army, Sanduleak came back to Case Institute, receiving a master's degree in 1961 and a doctorate in 1965. His advisor was Dr. Victor Manuel Blanco. After working at the Kitt Peak and Cerro Tololo Observatories, Sanduleak moved to the Warner and Swasey Observatory, where he remained until his death from cardiac arrest.
Scientific contributions
Sanduleak was a spectroscopist who worked on a number of very large objective prism surveys. He discovered Nova Aurigae 1964 on one of the objective prism plates. He was the first to discover metallicity differences between the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds, and wrote papers about a number of spectroscopically interesting objects. He produced a catalogue of stars in the Magellanic Clouds which included the star Sanduleak -69° 202, the progenitor of the supernova SN 1987A.
The asteroid 9403 Sanduleak is named after him.
Content from Wikipedia — licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
16 Verified Trivia Questions About Nicholas Sanduleak
Every question below is stored in the archive and checked against Nicholas Sanduleak's record and biography. The correct answer and the reasoning behind it are given with each question.
1.In what city was Nicholas Sanduleak born?
- A.Cleveland
- B.LackawannaCorrect
- C.Bucharest
- D.Pittsburgh
Nicholas Sanduleak was born on June 22, 1933, in Lackawanna, New York.
Source: biographical introduction
2.In what year did Nicholas Sanduleak receive his Bachelor of Science degree?
- A.1933
- B.1961
- C.1956Correct
- D.1965
Nicholas Sanduleak did undergraduate work at the Case Institute of Technology, receiving a B.S. in 1956.
Source: biography section
3.What branch of the military did Nicholas Sanduleak serve in?
- A.Marines
- B.ArmyCorrect
- C.Air Force
- D.Navy
After his undergraduate studies, Nicholas Sanduleak served in the Army before returning to Case Institute.
Source: biography section
4.Who served as the doctoral advisor for Nicholas Sanduleak?
- A.Nicolae Sanduleac
- B.None of these
- C.Warner Swasey
- D.Victor Manuel BlancoCorrect
Nicholas Sanduleak received his doctorate in 1965 under the guidance of his advisor, Dr. Victor Manuel Blanco.
Source: biography section
5.At which observatory did Nicholas Sanduleak remain until his death?
- A.Case Institute Observatory
- B.Warner and Swasey ObservatoryCorrect
- C.Kitt Peak Observatory
- D.Cerro Tololo Observatory
Nicholas Sanduleak worked at the Warner and Swasey Observatory until he passed away.
Source: biography section
6.What was the cause of death of Nicholas Sanduleak?
- A.Cancer
- B.A stroke
- C.Cardiac arrestCorrect
- D.Pneumonia
Nicholas Sanduleak died from cardiac arrest on May 7, 1990.
Source: biography section
7.Which specific nova did Nicholas Sanduleak discover while working with objective prism plates?
- A.Nova Sagittarii 1990
- B.Nova Aurigae 1964Correct
- C.Nova Cygni 1975
- D.Nova Scorpii 1961
Nicholas Sanduleak discovered Nova Aurigae 1964 on one of the objective prism plates.
Source: scientific contributions
8.What type of scientist was Nicholas Sanduleak?
- A.SpectroscopistCorrect
- B.Cosmologist
- C.Planetary scientist
- D.Astrophysicist
Nicholas Sanduleak was a spectroscopist who conducted very large objective prism surveys.
Source: scientific contributions
9.What significant astronomical discovery did Nicholas Sanduleak make regarding the Magellanic Clouds?
- A.Distance variations
- B.Metallicity differencesCorrect
- C.Total mass estimates
- D.Rotation velocity
Nicholas Sanduleak was the first astronomer to discover metallicity differences between the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds.
Source: scientific contributions
10.Which star included in the catalogue by Nicholas Sanduleak is known as the progenitor of SN 1987A?
- A.Sanduleak -56° 1933
- B.Sanduleak -69° 202Correct
- C.Sanduleak 9403
- D.Sanduleak 1965
The catalogue created by Nicholas Sanduleak included the star Sanduleak -69° 202, which is the progenitor of the supernova SN 1987A.
Source: scientific contributions
11.What object in space bears the name of Nicholas Sanduleak?
- A.An asteroidCorrect
- B.A galaxy
- C.A pulsar
- D.A crater on the Moon
The asteroid 9403 Sanduleak is named in honor of the astronomer Nicholas Sanduleak.
Source: scientific contributions
12.In what year did Nicholas Sanduleak receive his master's degree?
- A.1960
- B.1956
- C.1961Correct
- D.1965
After serving in the military, Nicholas Sanduleak returned to the Case Institute and received his master's degree in 1961.
Source: biography section
13.Where did the family of Nicholas Sanduleak move to shortly after his birth?
- A.Romania
- B.New York City
- C.Lackawanna
- D.ClevelandCorrect
Nicholas Sanduleak's family moved to Cleveland soon after he was born in Lackawanna.
Source: biography section
14.What was the nationality of the parents of Nicholas Sanduleak?
- A.Canadian
- B.American
- C.German
- D.RomanianCorrect
The parents of Nicholas Sanduleak were born in Romania.
Source: biography section
15.In what year did Nicholas Sanduleak pass away?
- A.1990Correct
- B.1988
- C.1989
- D.1987
Nicholas Sanduleak died on May 7, 1990.
Source: biography section
16.Which institution granted Nicholas Sanduleak his doctorate in 1965?
- A.Case Institute of TechnologyCorrect
- B.Warner and Swasey Observatory
- C.Kitt Peak Observatory
- D.Cerro Tololo Observatory
Nicholas Sanduleak received his doctorate from the Case Institute of Technology in 1965.
Source: biography section
Interactive
Test Your Knowledge – Trivia Challenge
How well do you know this person's life and legacy?
No account needed to play. Sign in to keep your score on the leaderboard.
Books & Media
Find books, audiobooks and films about Nicholas Sanduleak on Amazon.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.
Sources
- Wikipedia
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Sanduleak
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sep 26, 2026
- View article
- Sep 26, 2026
People who died on May 7
Spotted an error?
Help us keep the archive accurate. Report a correction with a source.
Report an error for Nicholas Sanduleak →
