By Debbie Goodwin
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To quote one of planet’s our earliest astronomers, Claudius Ptolemaeus, or Ptolemy, “Mortal as I am, I know that I am born for a day. But when I follow at my pleasure the serried multitude of the stars in their circular course, my feet no longer touch the Earth.”
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| Photo: Amid a backdrop of far-off galaxies, the majestic dusty spiral, NGC 3370, looms in the foreground in this NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. |
We will soon close production on the W. M. Keck Observatory’s first annual report. The Observatory has chosen to raise its public profile. The organization agreed that there is value in summarizing and sharing our annual achievements -- to encourage its continued success.
The findings in the report are reflective of the enormous quality and drive of the people who make up our organization. The past fiscal year, October 2005 – September 2006, was measurably the most scientifically productive year in Keck’s history:
- 194 scientific papers were published reporting results of observations made at the Observatory;
- 300 research proposals were allocated time on the telescopes to study everything from the celestial objects in our own solar system to objects at the farthest reaches of the known universe;
- 41 new individuals, foundations, and corporations became cherished “friends” of the Observatory and over $5 million was raised in charitable donations;
- We gained potent new leadership as Taft Armandroff succeeded Fred Chaffee as Observatory Director, and Ed Stone from Cal Tech and France Cordova from the University of California became our new Board Chair and Co-Chair, respectively.
Keck Observatory’s corporate culture thrives on being “first and fast.” Our Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics (LGS AO) innovations were recognized at the winter meeting of the American Astronomical Society, attended by a record 3100 astronomers from all over the world. A special session of this meeting was devoted entirely to Keck Observatory’s early LGS AO results. A standing-room only crowd packed the room, eager to learn more about the amazing scientific achievements of this very young technology.
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| Photo: Hoku
Project dancers personify nebulae and their protostars. Photo by Sarah Anderson. |
Beyond its cutting-edge scientific achievements, the Observatory is growing more fully into its role as a responsible member of the Hawai‘i Island community. The year was replete with public lectures, educational workshops, internships, and compelling outreach efforts such as this Cosmic
Matters e-magazine. Our audiences were both large and small, and those we touched were both young and old. With creativity and with heart, Keck Observatory shared the inspiration of discovery and the richness of science and innovation.
Tangential to our fundraising goals is the value of our work. This is what inspires me. I feel incredibly privileged to work among the most brilliant and caring, passionately inquisitive, global-minded people I have ever met.
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| Photo by Rick Peterson. |
It was a year to be proud of and grateful for. As the season of endings and new beginnings approaches, we extend to all on this precious planet A Universe of Good Wishes. 
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