The Rev. Thomas McShane, S.J., a longtime professor of physics at Creighton University died at the age of 89 on Oct. 17 in a Milwaukee Jesuit retirement community.

McShane began his tenure at Creighton in 1963 and taught for more than 50 years in the Physics Department.

A former colleague, Michael Cherney, said of McShane, “He had a talent for drawing out the best in these students, influencing what they value and seeing that they realized their unseen potential.”

His legacy as a professor is marked by his students’ success, including the astronaut Michael Anderson, who was aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia when it disintegrated upon re-entry to the atmosphere in 2003 killing all seven crew members.

In addition to his work as a professor, McShane was a prolific author and worked closely with a high energy nuclear physics experiment, STAR Collaboration, for 20 years.

According to a press release from Creighton University, McShane saw physics as a window to learn more about God’s creation, rather than as a conflict between religion and science.