TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Fred Espenak, an astrophysicist that Astronomy magazine dubbed "Earth's premiere authority on solar eclipses," died Sunday, June 1, at his home in Portal, Ariz. He was 71 years old.

Espenak spent more than 30 years studying the infrared spectroscopy of planetary atmospheres at Goddard Space Flight Center, in Greenbelt, Maryland, according to the bio on his website, mreclipse.com .

He also served as NASA's eclipse expert, the bio said, publishing multiple books and articles on eclipse predictions.

Born in New York City, Espenak studied astronomy briefly at the University of Arizona before transferring to Wagner University for physics, and then the University of Toledo for graduate school, according to a first-person testimonial on another one of his websites, as

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