ASP Announces 2019 Award Recipients
Richard Fienberg Running Hare Observatory
This post is adapted from a series of press releases and announcements on the ASP website:
The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP), founded in 1889 (10 years before the AAS) and based in San Francisco, California, is an international nonprofit scientific and educational organization that works to increase understanding and appreciation of astronomy.
Each year the ASP recognizes individual achievements in astronomy research, technology, education, and public outreach. The 2019 award winners have just been announced. Here's a summary; follow the links to read more detailed information about each of the recipients.
Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal
Established by Catherine Wolfe Bruce, an American philanthropist and patroness of astronomy, the ASP's highest award is given annually to a professional astronomer in recognition of a lifetime of outstanding achievement and contributions to astrophysics research. The medal has gone to some of the greatest astronomers of the past century and was first awarded in 1898 to Simon Newcomb, co-founder and first President of the AAS. The 2019 recipient is Dr. Martha P. Haynes, Goldwin Smith Professor of Astronomy at Cornell University, who has made major contributions to our understanding of the composition, interactions, distribution, and evolution of galaxies in the universe throughout an impressive research career spanning more than 40 years. Haynes is an internationally recognized leader and pioneer in radio studies of galaxies, specifically observations of the 21-cm wavelength of neutral hydrogen.
The Arthur B. C. Walker II Award is presented to an outstanding African American (or member of the African diaspora) who works in the astronomical sciences as a recognized leader in efforts to diversify the scientific community. The 2019 recipient is Dr. William M. Jackson Jr., Research and Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the University of California, Davis. Prof. Jackson is a renowned astrochemist who has studied the chemistry of comets and who led the team that used the International Ultraviolet Explorer to make the first satellite telescope comet observation. He has worked tirelessly throughout his career to diversify science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields and is co-founder of the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers.
The Maria and Eric Muhlmann Award is given annually for recent significant observational results made possible by innovative advances in astronomical instrumentation, software, or observational infrastructure. This year it goes to Dr. Mark J. Reid, Senior Radio Astronomer at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, for his pioneering work in radio astronomy, including the use of very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) and the development of the Very Long Baseline Array. Dr. Reid is being recognized in particular for his use of VLBI to study the intense radio emissions coming from excited molecules, also known as astrophysical masers, to make incredibly accurate distance measurements to both nearby and distant galaxies. Reid also used this technique to make detailed, three-dimensional measurements of our own Milky Way galaxy and its elusive nucleus.
The ASP bestows the Klumpke-Roberts Award on those who have made outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy. Past awardees include Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, Chesley Bonestell, Timothy Ferris, Walter Sullivan, Heidi Hammel, and the staffs of Sky & Telescope and Astronomy magazines. The 2019 recipient is Dr. Jay Pasachoff, Field Memorial Professor of Astronomy and Director, Hopkins Observatory, Williams College, Massachusetts. Jay Pasachoff's passion and dedication to astronomy goes far beyond his main role as professor and researcher. He is lead author of the textbook The Cosmos: Astronomy in the New Millennium, now in its 5th edition, and has written hundreds of scholarly and popular articles, textbooks and popular books, and conference series contributions, instilling a love of astronomy to laypersons and students all over the world. His solar-eclipse expeditions, including 35 total eclipses, have led to both scientific papers and popular articles.
The Robert J. Trumpler Award is given each year to a recent recipient of the PhD degree in North America whose research is considered unusually important to astronomy. This year's recipient is Dr. Katheryn Decker French, who completed her PhD in astronomy at the University of Arizona, Tucson, in 2017. Decker French's dissertation, "New Methods for Tracking Galaxy and Black Hole Evolution Using Post-Starburst Galaxies," focuses on a radio survey of the gas clouds within galaxies that have recently ended the star-forming phase of their evolution. The lack of star formation in these galaxies has long been assumed to be caused by a depletion of the cold, dense molecular gases needed to coalesce into new stars. But by looking more carefully at these galaxies at radio wavelengths, Decker French observed that they have plenty of cold gas to make stars, but that this gas is not dense enough to get the star-forming process going — a finding that fundamentally challenged a long-held assumption about post-starburst galaxies.
Dr. Jeanne Bishop, a well-known astronomy educator, wished to honor her father, an astronomer with a lifelong dedication to astronomy education, by creating an award that recognizes and celebrates outstanding achievement in the teaching of college-level introductory astronomy for non-science majors. The 2019 recipient of the Richard H. Emmonds Award is Dr. Nick Schneider, Professor of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder, for his serious commitment to teaching and his innovative methods. Celebrating 30 years in the teaching profession, Nick Schneider brings a selfless dedication to undergraduate education as an author, instructor, and mentor. He co-authored The Cosmic Perspective, one of the most highly-regarded "Astro 101" textbooks, now in its 9th edition; his innovative chapters on planetary science have had a national impact on how the subject is taught. Schneider enthusiastically shares his teaching methods with colleagues, junior faculty, and graduate students through workshops and mentoring.
The ASP's 2019 award winners will receive their prizes at the ASP Awards Gala (ceremony and banquet) on 9 November 2019 in Burlingame, California. Congratulations, all!