,

Chien-hsiung “Ken” Yang, 97, passed away peacefully on August 12, 2026, with his two sons by

his side. He was a beloved husband, father, grandfather, friend, and colleague, and is dearly

missed by all whose lives he graced with his kindness, patience, and love for life. Ken held a

deep appreciation for mathematics, nature and the outdoors, and found lifelong joy in tennis,

books (mostly non-fiction), classical music (particularly Dvořák and Tchaikovsky), world history,

and an unending curiosity to keep learning.

Ken was born the youngest of six boys in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, in 1929, and was raised first in

the Japanese school system and then, after World War II, in the Chinese system. He graduated

from National Taiwan University with a BS in physics in 1950. In 1953, under a visiting

scientists’ program with the US State Department, he traveled to the US for the first time,

studying at the University of Chicago and touring sections of the US Weather Bureau. He

returned to Taiwan to teach at his alma mater, and during this time married his wife, Yulie, and

together welcomed their first son, Jong, into the world. In 1963, Ken was invited by Prof. E.

Wendell Hewson to join his lab at the University of Michigan for doctoral study. He earned his

PhD in physics in 1967, the same year his second son, Julius, was born.

Ken then moved his family to Lexington, Massachusetts, spending the next 40 years as a

Research Physicist in the Geophysics Laboratory at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford. His

career was devoted to the numerical modeling of the global atmosphere and improving methods

for the analysis and prediction of weather patterns. His research was still informing scientific

work decades later, contributing to a 2009 article in the journal Earth Interactions on the effects

of El Niño on bird migration patterns at Attu Island.

Ken and Yulie were devoted grandparents to their six grandchildren, and Ken remained an

enthusiastic presence at their scholastic events for years to come. He volunteered with several

Concord organizations, including the Public Library, the Community Chest, and Open Table.

After Yulie’s passing in 2011, Ken continued his full life, and in 2015, at 86, he embraced the

adventure of moving cross-country to Santa Barbara, California, with Jong’s family. There he

took classes at UCSB and SBCC, volunteered at the public library and at the tennis courts,

taught himself to code in Python to explore patterns in prime numbers, exercised the family’s

two dogs on long beach walks, and successfully evaded Covid.

In 2022, at 93, Ken moved into The Commons in Lincoln, MA, where he welcomed the return to

New England and closeness to Julius and his family. In 2024, he traveled back to Kaohsiung

and swam at his boyhood beach with two of his granddaughters. Into his final months, he

continued finding joy in reading, expanding his understanding of the world (AI included), taking

long daily walks, and, especially, spending time with family.

Ken was predeceased by his wife, Yulie (2011). He leaves his son, Jong, wife Wendy, and their

daughters, Haley, Hanna, and Sarah; and his son, Julius, wife Laurie Burnett, and their children,

Jasper, Elsie, and Zachary.

The family is grateful to the staff at The Commons in Lincoln and Care Dimensions Hospice for

their extraordinary care through his final months. A remembrance for Ken will be held privately

by the family. He spent his final days expressing his profound gratitude for all those he loved,

and those who loved him. In lieu of flowers, consider a gift to Friends of Acadia

(https://friendsofacadia.org/membership-giving/donate/), where Ken, Yulie, and their sons loved

camping, hiking, exploring, and just being together; to the Rice Public Library in Kittery, Maine

(https://rice.lib.me.us/donate-to-the-rpl-corporation/), where Ken borrowed his final large-print

books; or to your own public library to help foster a free, open, and welcoming environment for

information and knowledge.