When
7 p.m., Sept. 29, 2010
Where
Kuiper Space Sciences, 1629 E. University Blvd. 308
Dale P. Cruikshank, Research Scientist, NASA Ames Research Center
Gerard P. Kuiper discovered the atmosphere of Titan by photographic spectroscopy in 1944 during a break from war work, but when new near-infrared detectors were declassified in 1946, he turned his attention to planetary spectroscopy beyond the limits of photographic emulsions. Many discoveries were quick to follow. He pursued this subject vigorously in the early 1960s in his newly established Lunar and Planetary Lab (LPL), making use of new gratings and improved detectors, and the technical/electronics skills of Harold Johnson. Alan Binder (whose later projects included working on the Viking Mars Mission, serving as Principal Investigator for the Lunar Prospector Mission, and establishing the Lunar Research Institute) and I worked as students in Kuiper's spectroscopy lab starting in 1961 or 1962, building new instruments and taking spectra of gases in the long absorption cells, as well as assisting Kuiper on lengthy observing runs at McDonald, Catalina, and Kitt Peak observatories, in the Convair-990 (Galileo) aircraft, and from balloons launched from the Glen Canyon dam during its construction. The program took major leaps forward as Uwe Fink and Harold Larson (both became professors at LPL) joined the spectroscopy lab and the transition to interferometer-spectrometers occurred. Building on Kuiper's initial airborne spectroscopy program, Larson and Fink conducted a 20-year marathon of outstanding high-profile scientific work on the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. I will talk about experiences with Kuiper starting with my summer assistantships at Yerkes Observatory (1958, 1959, and 1960), the earliest years and interesting characters in Tucson, and my thoughts on the field of near-infrared planetary spectroscopy as it now stands.
Dr. Dale Cruikshank is an alumnus (1968) of the University of Arizona and the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. Cruikshank pioneered the application of infrared spectroscopy to solar system bodies, developed laboratory techniques that became tools for interpreting the observations, and has been a leader in the design of instruments for remote sensing observations from deep space planetary exploration probes. Cruikshank's key contributions concern the detection and characterization of volatiles and organics of the surfaces of asteroids and outer solar system bodies. His discoveries, spanning four decades, confirm the early conjecture that common ices are dominant components of outer solar system bodies. With colleagues, he discovered the five ices known on Triton, three on Pluto, and water ice on satellites of Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. With colleagues, he was first to find water ice in the Kuiper Belt, and methanol ice on a Centaur that links these bodies to comets. The ices he found on Triton and Pluto are the sources of the atmospheres of these two bodies, especially fitting discoveries as it was G.P. Kuiper who discovered the first satellite atmosphere, on Titan.
Cruikshank pioneered thermal infrared determinations of the albedos of small bodies beyond the asteroid main belt, leading to the recognition that low-albedo material is prevalent in the outer solar system. His spectroscopic work gave the first firm evidence for complex organic solids on a planetary body (Saturn's satellite Iapetus), and provides the basis for progress on the identification of such materials elsewhere. A distinguished scientist and a recognized leader in the planetary community, Cruikshank has participated in a number of past and present NASA missions, including Voyager, Cassini, Spitzer, and New Horizons.
For his outstanding contributions to planetary science, and especially planetary astronomy, the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences awarded the 2006 Gerard P. Kuiper Prize to Dale P. Cruikshank.
The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory: 1960-2010
Fifty years of Excellence in Research and Education
Gerard P. Kuiper discovered the atmosphere of Titan by photographic spectroscopy in 1944 during a break from war work, but when new near-infrared detectors were declassified in 1946, he turned his attention to planetary spectroscopy beyond the limits of photographic emulsions. Many discoveries were quick to follow. He pursued this subject vigorously in the early 1960s in his newly established Lunar and Planetary Lab (LPL), making use of new gratings and improved detectors, and the technical/electronics skills of Harold Johnson. Alan Binder (whose later projects included working on the Viking Mars Mission, serving as Principal Investigator for the Lunar Prospector Mission, and establishing the Lunar Research Institute) and I worked as students in Kuiper's spectroscopy lab starting in 1961 or 1962, building new instruments and taking spectra of gases in the long absorption cells, as well as assisting Kuiper on lengthy observing runs at McDonald, Catalina, and Kitt Peak observatories, in the Convair-990 (Galileo) aircraft, and from balloons launched from the Glen Canyon dam during its construction. The program took major leaps forward as Uwe Fink and Harold Larson (both became professors at LPL) joined the spectroscopy lab and the transition to interferometer-spectrometers occurred. Building on Kuiper's initial airborne spectroscopy program, Larson and Fink conducted a 20-year marathon of outstanding high-profile scientific work on the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. I will talk about experiences with Kuiper starting with my summer assistantships at Yerkes Observatory (1958, 1959, and 1960), the earliest years and interesting characters in Tucson, and my thoughts on the field of near-infrared planetary spectroscopy as it now stands.
Dr. Dale Cruikshank is an alumnus (1968) of the University of Arizona and the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. Cruikshank pioneered the application of infrared spectroscopy to solar system bodies, developed laboratory techniques that became tools for interpreting the observations, and has been a leader in the design of instruments for remote sensing observations from deep space planetary exploration probes. Cruikshank's key contributions concern the detection and characterization of volatiles and organics of the surfaces of asteroids and outer solar system bodies. His discoveries, spanning four decades, confirm the early conjecture that common ices are dominant components of outer solar system bodies. With colleagues, he discovered the five ices known on Triton, three on Pluto, and water ice on satellites of Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto. With colleagues, he was first to find water ice in the Kuiper Belt, and methanol ice on a Centaur that links these bodies to comets. The ices he found on Triton and Pluto are the sources of the atmospheres of these two bodies, especially fitting discoveries as it was G.P. Kuiper who discovered the first satellite atmosphere, on Titan.
Cruikshank pioneered thermal infrared determinations of the albedos of small bodies beyond the asteroid main belt, leading to the recognition that low-albedo material is prevalent in the outer solar system. His spectroscopic work gave the first firm evidence for complex organic solids on a planetary body (Saturn's satellite Iapetus), and provides the basis for progress on the identification of such materials elsewhere. A distinguished scientist and a recognized leader in the planetary community, Cruikshank has participated in a number of past and present NASA missions, including Voyager, Cassini, Spitzer, and New Horizons.
For his outstanding contributions to planetary science, and especially planetary astronomy, the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences awarded the 2006 Gerard P. Kuiper Prize to Dale P. Cruikshank.
The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory: 1960-2010
Fifty years of Excellence in Research and Education
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