The formation of extreme mass ratio binary stars: a tribute to Eduardo De lgado Donate

Abstract

Eduardo Delgado was due to have presented a poster at this meeting on his latest results on the formation of extreme mass ratio binaries. Tragically, Eduardo was among those killed in a hiking accident in Tenerife earlier this year. As his PhD supervisor, and as a longstanding collaborator, the organisers of this meeting kindly invited me to incorporate a report on his most recent work into a more general tribute to his life and work. I will reflect on Eduardo's scientific career, the problems that motivated him and his achievements, focusing particularly on a problem which had intrigued us both for several years and on which Eduardo was making important progress at the time of his death. Finally, I will mention the personal qualities that Eduardo brought to his work and the acute sense of loss that is shared by all those - friends and collaborators - who were privileged to know him.