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Five Decades of Discovery

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Five Decades of Discovery UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I INSTITUTE FOR ASTRONOMY Five Decades of Discovery 1 John T. Jefferies – The Visionary Let me say how grateful we must all be to the director and staff of the Institute for the opportunity to celebrate a program that has risen, during its 50-year lifetime, from hope and determination to the world-class status it enjoys. All those who over this long stretch of years worked to make this possible should take pride in having contributed to the creation of something of real distinction. The people of the State of Hawai‘i, too, may share a genuine satisfaction in seeing their state brought to the In 1967, John Jefferies was named first director of the new Institute for forefront of humanity’s effort to understand the universe and our place in it. I like to Astronomy. In 1975, construction for a think that Governor John Burns, always a strong supporter of our program, would dedicated building began in Mānoa. take great satisfaction in seeing what has been built at the Institute, and all that During his tenure as director, six major has sprung from it in Hawai‘i. In addition, no acknowledgment would be complete telescopes were commissioned: the UH 2.2-m telescope, the Canada- without a special notice of those at all levels in NASA who were willing to take a risk France-Hawaii Telescope, the NASA on a very untried program. Without their boldness and unfailing support, we would Infrared Telescope Facility, the United surely not be celebrating this anniversary. Kingdom Infrared Telescope, the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory, As the person responsible for leading the Institute for its first 16 years, I am naturally and the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. very proud to have been associated so intimately with it, and gratified at how it has This new generation of telescopes established Maunakea as the greatest thrived. For what it is worth, let me offer my admiration to the several directors and observatory site in the world. all the staff who succeeded me for making this so. Finally, a special word of thanks to all those colleagues and friends who worked with such integrity and in a spirit of mutual support and respect, to advance us toward the bright and shining goal that was ours from the start. Working with them was the most rewarding part of my professional life – I hope that they look back on those days with equal satisfaction and pleasure. — John Jefferies, Director 1967-1983 2 Photo by Richard Wainscoat Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope groundbreaking on Maunakea, July 2, 1974. L to R: Mr. Guy Vachon (SNC, Inc., Canada); Rev. Israel Kamoku; Dr. John T. Jefferies (University of Hawai‘i and CFHT Board of Directors): Dr. Roger Cayrel (Chief Project Officer, CFHT Corporation); Dr. Kenneth Wright (Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, Victoria, B.C.); and Mr. John Hoag (University of Hawai‘i Board of Regents) The UH IfA Journey A Global View The summits of Maunakea and Haleakala¯ in Hawai‘i are the best astronomical observing sites in the world, hosting many international observatories. We owe a debt of gratitude to John Jefferies and those who followed his leadership in establishing the IfA. We now operate the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility, the UH 2.2-m telescope, a suite of survey telescopes including two for Pan-STARRS, two for the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, and one for the Variable Young Stellar Objects Survey, as well as the Günther Hasinger Mees Solar Observatory. We are also responsible for the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope and the James “We have 12 telescopes Clerk Maxwell Telescope, both on Maunakea. working like an orchestra up on Our staff of about 250, including 55 astronomers and over 30 graduate students, undertakes research Maunakea. And each one has in almost all areas of astronomy, and our innovative instrumentation program includes adaptive optics a specialization of its own. We and array detector development as well as major instruments for the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope. have the first and second violins Together with the other observatories in Hawai‘i, and collaborations with partners across the globe, these (Keck I & Keck II), but also remarkable resources support our vibrant and diverse research, prepare our graduate and undergradu ate the smaller telescopes, which students for exciting scientific careers, and connect our people and discoveries to the local community. each have a tune of their own. Our success resides in the dedication of our staff, in the support of the University of Hawai‘i, and the And together, they play the people of the State of Hawai‘i . ‘Symphony of the Stars.’” —Günther Hasinger, IfA Director — G.H. on PBS http://bit.ly/symofstars 1 Eric Becklin: The Trailblazer Don Hall: The Negotiator When Voyager 1 flew by Jupiter’s moon Io in 1979 Beginning in 1984, Don Hall’s directorship of and discovered active volcanoes spewing gas and the Institute for Astronomy steered its growth to ash miles high, NASA’s new Infrared Telescope become one of the leading astronomical research Facility on Maunakea was able to characterize the institutes and graduate programs in the world. infrared radiation from the eruptions. “The siting of the Keck I and II, Gemini, “That made the IRTF unique. It was the and Subaru telescopes on Maunakea had only ground-based telescope at the time a major impact on the Big Island and led that could make these measurements, to a very favorable impression of the IfA in especially at 20 and 30 microns. There was the university, in the state, and beyond. The a revolution in infrared astronomy at that University of Hawai‘i share of these four Photo by Jason Chu time. It was very exciting.” telescopes is the equivalent of 50 percent of the observing time on an 8–10 meter class The NASA Infrared Telescope Facility on — Eric Becklin, IRTF Director 1979-1983 Maunakea telescope, but with access to a wider range of capabilities and instruments.” —Don Hall, IfA Director 1984-1997 Photo by Rob Ratkowski Facilities on Haleakala¯, Maui 2 PIONEERING TELESCOPES Maunakea Observatories on the Island of Hawai‘i. © NAOJ Enabling Astronomy Bob McLaren: Attention to Detail As IfA Associate Director since 1990, one of Bob world’s premier observatory in the Northern “In the case of the Thirty Meter Telescope, McLaren’s jobs was to finalize agreements for Hemisphere. $1 million each year supports STEM construction of a new generation of telescopes. In 2000, responding to community concerns education through scholarships and grants Even searching for the dawn of the universe requires over future development, the Maunakea Science for teachers on the Big Island. It’s part of a paperwork. Reserve Master Plan created the Office of Maunakea real effort to involve the community in the “Japan’s Subaru Telescope, the second Keck Management (OMKM) to take responsibility for excitement of astronomical discoveries.” Telescope, Gemini North, and the Submillimeter mountain management. — Bob McLaren, IfA Associate Director 1990-2017 Array all needed to complete the permitting process After being the university’s managing entity for with the agreements worked out between UH and everything on the mountain, this meant the IfA whoever was operating the telescope,” McLaren could focus on science, and help protect Maunakea’s said. “It was an intense time.” natural resources without having to manage them. Over the next decade, McLaren catalyzed the The move also led to substantial direct benefits for growth of MKO from 3-meter to 10-meter class the community from the astronomy programs. telescopes, solidifying MKO’s reputation as the 3 2014 IfA Transit of Venus public event Photo by Karen Teramura In July 2005, thousands of people gathered in Waikiki with IfA scientists to watch the live broadcast of the final stages of NASA’s Deep Impact Mission to Comet Tempel 1. Summer HISTAR Program for secondary school students Photo by Karen Teramura Photo: The Honolulu Star-Advertiser Summer HISTAR Program Annual IfA Open House IfA Open House Photo by Karen Teramura 4 COMMUNICATING DISCOVERIES Engaging and Educating “Our faculty have trained a total of 138 astronomy PhDs and 33 Masters students Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences, but one in which new discoveries are made daily. over 43 years. Almost all of these students With nothing more than light collected by state-of-the-art telescopes, scientists can measure have moved into science and technology temperatures, compositions, velocities, and sizes. Combine this information with the laws of physics professions. Many stayed in astronomy as and chemistry, and it’s possible to figure out what powers the Sun, find thousands of worlds around researchers and educators, and some have other stars, and even look back to the dawn of the universe. become prominent leaders in our field. The University of Hawai‘i offers both Astronomy (BA) and Astrophysics (BS) degrees. For more Whenever I run into alumni, they often information on the undergraduate program, visit http://manoa.hawaii.edu/astronomy. recount fond memories of the Islands and the influence that the Institute had on them.” Our online graduate program pages can be found at http://gradprog.ifa.hawaii.edu/ — Jonathan Williams, Graduate Chair Come explore the universe from paradise. We may not fly around the cosmos as in “Star Trek” but with every step of exploration, we find we’ve learned more about ourselves.” — Geoffrey Mathews Photo by Geoff Mathews Photo by Jonathan Williams Clockwise from top: Astronomy undergraduate students observing remotely with the UH 2.2-m; IfA’s graduate students in 2017 (above) and in 1975 (left) 5 Top: Artist’s impression of the planetary system HD 7924, looking back toward our sun.
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