We express our deepest sorrow at the passing of Professor Carlos Salema, former President of Instituto de Telecomunicações, Emeritus Professor, and a leading figure in electrical engineering and telecommunications in Portugal.
Born in 1942, in Ponta Delgada, Carlos Salema built an academic, scientific, and institutional career of exceptional distinction. He graduated in Electrical Engineering from Instituto Superior Técnico in 1965, and from an early stage began his association with university teaching. He later continued his studies at Queen Mary College, University of London, where he carried out doctoral research in the field of radiation and transmission, with the thesis Theory and Design of Dielectric Cone Antennas, completed in 1972, and was awarded a Doctorate in Engineering Sciences in 1973.
He was a Full Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico from 1979 to 2003 and was awarded the title of Doctor Emeritus by the Technical University of Lisbon in 2002. His research covered areas such as microwave antennas, particularly dielectric antennas, the propagation of microwaves in the atmosphere in the presence of rough surfaces, the reduction of redundancy in still and moving images, and the computer simulation of industrial processes.
Throughout his career, he held important leadership and public service roles, having served as President of Instituto de Telecomunicações, of the College of Electrical Engineering of the Portuguese Engineers Association, and of the Executive Board of the Foundation for National Scientific Computing. He also served as President of the Lisbon Academy of Sciences, was a member of the General Council of the University of Beira Interior, and of the Portuguese section of the IEEE Education Society Chapter. In recognition of his merit and contribution, he was awarded the Scientific Merit Medal in 2021 and was decorated with the Grand Cross of the Order of Public Instruction.
Professor Carlos Salema leaves a profound mark on teaching, research, and the advancement of telecommunications in Portugal. At Instituto de Telecomunicações, he will be remembered with gratitude, respect, and deep sorrow for his example of rigor, intellectual distinction, and dedication to knowledge and to institutions.
The current President of IT, Professor José Carlos Pedro, remarks: "It is largely to Professor Carlos Salema that we owe the strong sense of community into which the IT has grown, as well as the significant contributions this institution has made to the development of science and engineering in Portugal. I therefore cannot let this occasion pass without publicly expressing my gratitude for everything he has done for the IT, with no doubt that he will continue to live on in our memories as an enduring model and reference."
The Instituto de Telecomunicações extends its heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, colleagues, and disciples.
Note: The funeral ceremonies will take place today, Sunday, April 26, between 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. (with the rosary at 7:00 p.m., followed by Mass at 8:00 p.m.), at the Church of St. Anthony of Estoril, and tomorrow, Monday, April 27, with Mass at 9:00 a.m. and departure for the Estoril/Galiza cemetery at 10:30 a.m.
We leave here his last interview: