ror Telescope (MMT), operated jointly with the University of 

 Arizona. 



Major support facilities in Cambridge include a panoply of 

 computers, from work stations to main frames, connected by a 

 local-area network; an on-site astronomical library; a central 

 engineering department with numerous workshops, design, 

 and drafting facilities; and in-house printing and publishing 

 facilities that provide services for research programs. Special 

 laboratories are maintained fot the tadioisotopic, petrologic, 

 and mineralogic studies of meteorites, micrometeotoids, and 

 lunar samples; for the spectroscopy of atoms and molecules; 

 and for the development of instrumentation for astronomy, in- 

 cluding advanced infrared and x-ray detectors, fiber-optic-fed 

 spectrographs, and atomic maser clocks. 



Major research endeavors include the development of the 

 Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS), scheduled 

 for launch in 1997; the Submillimeter Array (SMA), now 

 under construction on Mauna Kea, Hawaii; a remote telescope 

 and observatory for submillimeter astronomy from Antarctica; 

 and the conversion of the MMT to a single-mirror instru- 

 ment. Various other instruments now under development in- 

 clude a High Resolution Imager for the Advanced X-ray 

 Astrophysics Facility (AXAF) satellite and the Tethered Satel- 

 lite System (TSS). 



Numerous facilities serving the astronomical community 

 are located on the grounds of the CfA in Cambridge as well. 

 The Institute fot Theoretical Atomic and Molecular Physics, 

 established in 1988 to attract and encourage talented graduate 

 students, emphasizes study of fundamental questions in 

 atomic and molecular physics. Other services to the astronomi- 

 cal community found at the CfA include the International 

 Astronomical Union's Central Telegram Bureau and the 

 Minor Planet Center, both of which disseminate information 

 on astronomical discoveries worldwide. The gateway for SIM- 

 BAD, an international astronomical computer database, is lo- 

 cated at the Cambtidge site, as is Harvard's extensive 

 collection of astronomical photogtaphic plates, one of the 

 largest in the world. SAO's selection by the National 

 Aeronautics and Space Administration to operate both the 

 AXAF Science Center and that spacecraft's flight Operations 

 Control Centet also includes myriad research opportunities. 

 A numbet of educational programs designed to improve 

 the teaching of pre-college science and mathematics focus on 

 the development of curricula materials and the conducting of 

 training workshops for educators. Public information 

 programs include Monthly Observatory Nights and bi-annual 

 Children's Nights in Cambridge, as well as the operation of a 

 Visitors Center at the Whipple Observatory- in Arizona, where 

 public programs include quartetly Star Parties and guided bus 

 tours. 



Highlights of research in 1996 included: 

 Using ground-based methods, the Gamma Ray Collaboration 

 at SAO's Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory discovered a 

 new class of active galaxies, which are thought to have mas- 

 sive black holes at their center and to be among the most 



energetic objects in the universe. In fact, the gamma-ray 

 emission from Markanan 421 is the most energetic radia- 

 tion ever detected by a ground-based observatory. 



The SAO-built Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer on- 

 board the NASA/ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory 

 (SOHO) satellite made the first ultraviolet images of the ex- 

 tended solar atmosphere and recorded surprisingly high 

 temperatutes for ionized atoms of hydrogen and oxygen 

 spewed into space. 



An unusual collabotation between a group of astrophysicists 

 at SAO and medical colleagues at Brigham and Women's 

 Hospital in Boston has led to the creation of enhanced Mag- 

 netic Resonance Imaging (MRI) techniques for previously 

 hard-to-image areas. MRI spectra of hyperpolarized xenon 

 gas — originally developed for elemental physics experi- 

 ments — inhaled by and dissolved in the body tissues of tats 

 suggest improved imaging of human lung, brain, and othet 

 tissue is possible. 



The first direct image of the surface of a star — other than the 

 Sun — is made with the Hubble Space Telescope by an SAO 

 astronomer and a colleague. Their observations, directed 

 toward the stellar behemoth Betelgeuse, reveal the presence 

 of a huge, hot, unexplained bright spot on its surface, 

 which is completely different from the multitude of small, 

 dark spots seen on the Sun. 



Fitst results from the Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and 

 Remote Observatory (AST/RO) built and operated by SAO 

 and Boston University demonstrate that conditions for sub- 

 millimeter-wave astronomy and atmospheric studies are 

 better than at any othet existing observatory site on Earth. 

 The telescope, operating in the 6-month-long night at the 

 Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, also provided unprece- 

 dented views of carbon atoms in out Galaxy and ozone 

 molecules in the Earth's stratosphere. 



An international team of astronomers including an SAO scien- 

 tist ptoduced a "movie'' of the expansion of debris from an 

 exploding star by using a global network of radio tele- 

 scopes. The extraordinary time-lapse sequence of images 

 documents the supernova explosion over a 12-month period. 



The Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer (UVCS), con- 

 ceived and designed by SAO scientists to study the solar 

 wind by creating a permanent, artificial eclipse to allow 

 conrinuous ultraviolet observations of the Sun's corona, was 

 launched from Kennedy Space Flight Center as part of the 

 Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) mission. Built by 

 the European Space Agency in cooperation with NASA, 

 SOHO is focused on understanding the complex relation- 

 ship among the Sun, Earth, and human activities. 

 Administrative milestones are the following: 



SAO was selected to opetate the flight Opetations Control 

 Centet for the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility 

 (AXAF) satellite, now scheduled fot launch in 1998. 

 Together with the previously awarded contract to opetate 

 the AXAF Science Center, SAO will be responsible for 

 even' aspect of the space observatory's mission after 



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