- Nobody who knows Nico Omenetto will believe that he is going to celebrate his 75th birthday on November 12 this year. There has to be a special elixir which keeps him going strong, enthusiastic and positive. It is certainly his wife Mariella and his son Fiorenzo with family, but also his love for scientific research and teaching. All of us, the spectrochemical community, have benefited from the great enthusiasm which he has invested in finessing the jounal Spectrochimica Acta, Part B for 20 years, spending numerous hours of his free time in handling manuscripts as mediator between authors and referees. We are grateful for his continuous, dedicated commitment to a journal which we all admire. The great appreciation of his colleagues can be observed from the universal support for this Special Issue on behalf of his upcoming birthday. All who were asked immediately agreed to submit contributions.