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Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
 
 
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The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) is a "research institute" of the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its Financial endowment, contributions, and profits from its shops and its magazine....
 headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge is a city in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts, United States. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England....
, where it is joined with the Harvard College Observatory
Harvard College Observatory

The Harvard College Observatory is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomy research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy....
 (HCO) to form the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is arguably the largest and most diverse astrophysical institution in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth science and space sciences, and science education....
 (CfA).

The SAO was founded in 1890 by Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley

Samuel Pierpont Langley was an United States astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation. He graduated from Boston Latin School, was an assistant in the Harvard College Observatory, then became chair of mathematics at the United States Naval Academy....
, the Smithsonian's third Secretary, primarily for studies of the sun. Langley is remembered today as an aeronautical pioneer, but he was trained as an astronomer and was the first American scientist to perceive "astrophysics" as a distinct field.






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The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) is a "research institute" of the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its Financial endowment, contributions, and profits from its shops and its magazine....
 headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge is a city in the Greater Boston area of Massachusetts, United States. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England....
, where it is joined with the Harvard College Observatory
Harvard College Observatory

The Harvard College Observatory is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomy research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy....
 (HCO) to form the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is arguably the largest and most diverse astrophysical institution in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth science and space sciences, and science education....
 (CfA).

The SAO was founded in 1890 by Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley

Samuel Pierpont Langley was an United States astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation. He graduated from Boston Latin School, was an assistant in the Harvard College Observatory, then became chair of mathematics at the United States Naval Academy....
, the Smithsonian's third Secretary, primarily for studies of the sun. Langley is remembered today as an aeronautical pioneer, but he was trained as an astronomer and was the first American scientist to perceive "astrophysics" as a distinct field. Langley invented the bolometer
Bolometer

A bolometer is a device for measuring the energy of incident electromagnetic radiation. It was invented in 1878 by the American astronomer Samuel Pierpont Langley....
 and discovered infrared
Infrared

Infrared radiation is electromagnetic radiation whose wavelength is longer than that of visible light , but shorter than that of terahertz radiation and microwaves ....
 radiation from the sun.

In 1955, SAO moved from Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the Capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790....
 to Cambridge, to affiliate with HCO and to expand its staff, facilities, and most importantly, its scientific scope. Fred Whipple, the first director of SAO in this new era, accepted a national challenge to create a worldwide satellite-tracking network, a decision that would establish SAO as a pioneer and leader in space science research.

In 1973, the ties between Smithsonian and Harvard were strengthened and formalized by the creation of the joint Harvard-Smithsonian CfA. Today, more than 300 scientists at the CfA are engaged in a broad program of research in astronomy
Astronomy

Astronomy is the science of Astronomical object and Phenomenon that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere . It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the physical cosmology....
, astrophysics
Astrophysics

Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of astronomical objects such as galaxy, stars, planets, exoplanets, and the interstellar medium, as well as their interactions....
, earth
Earth science

Earth science , is an all-embracing term for the sciences related to the planet Earth . It is arguably a special case in planetary science, the Earth being the only known life-bearing planet....
 and space science
Space science

Space science is an all-encompassing term that describes all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere"....
s, and science education
Science education

Science education is the field concerned with sharing science content and process with individuals not traditionally considered part of the scientific community....
.

SAO's pioneering efforts in the development of orbiting observatories and large ground-based telescopes, the application of computers to astrophysical problems, and the integration of laboratory measurements, theoretical astrophysics, and observations across the electromagnetic spectrum
Electromagnetic spectrum

The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of all possible electromagnetic radiation frequencies. The "electromagnetic spectrum" of an object is the characteristic distribution of electromagnetic radiation from that particular object....
 have contributed much to unveiling the secrets of the universe.

The Chandra X-ray Observatory
Chandra X-ray Observatory

The Chandra X-ray Observatory is a satellite launched on STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999. It was named in honor of Indian-United States physicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar who is known for determining the Chandrasekhar limit for white dwarf stars to become neutron stars....
 is managed and operated by SAO from Cambridge. With the University of Arizona
University of Arizona

The University of Arizona is a land-grant and Space grant colleges Public university institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States....
, SAO also manages the MMT Observatory
MMT Observatory

The MMT Observatory is an astronomical observatory on the site of Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory . The Whipple observatory complex is located on Mount Hopkins , Arizona, USA in the Santa Rita Mountains....
.

Directors

  • Samuel Pierpont Langley
    Samuel Pierpont Langley

    Samuel Pierpont Langley was an United States astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation. He graduated from Boston Latin School, was an assistant in the Harvard College Observatory, then became chair of mathematics at the United States Naval Academy....
     1890-1906
  • Charles Greeley Abbot
    Charles Greeley Abbot

    Charles Greeley Abbot was an United States astrophysicist, astronomer and Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. He was born in Wilton, New Hampshire....
     1906-1944
  • Loyal B. Aldrich 1944-1955
  • Fred Lawrence Whipple
    Fred Lawrence Whipple

    Fred Lawrence Whipple was an United States astronomer.He is best known for writing an influential paper in which he proposed the "icy conglomerate" hypothesis of comet composition ....
     1955-1973


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