Ivan King '47, a research professor of astronomy at the University of Washington, gave a lecture titled "Through the Universe with the Hubble Space Telescope" on October 1 as part of the Science Center dedication weekend. Dr. King took his audience on a "Tour of the Universe" with pictures taken by the Hubble telescope.
According to Dr. King, the Hubble, which is 350 miles from Earth, orbits the Earth 15 times per day. It is a medium sized telescope that transmits data to a ground station; this data will reach the observer a day or two after it was recorded by the Hubble. Dr. King noted the importance of having such a telescope in space, saying that pictures taken from space are not distorted by the Earth's atmosphere, as they would be if they were photographed from the Earth. The Hubble's sharp images, he said, are central to its significance.
Dr. King used some of these images to take his audience on a "Tour of the Universe," starting with a picture of the Hubble above the Earth, then moving farther outward to pictures of planets in our solar system, and then moving beyond those to photographs of other galaxies and distant star clusters. Putting the small size of our solar system in the context of the Universe, King said, "If our solar system was in this room, the nearest star would be in Rochester or Buffalo."
Dr. King also showed pictures of globular star clusters, his self-professed favorite aspect of astronomy and, correspondingly, his particular area of expertise. He noted that the Hubble allows us to see individual stars within these clusters and even to other galaxies beyond them. From a planet within one of these clusters, the night sky would have 10,000 times as many stars as we see from Earth.
Individual stars, he said, may be bright red, which are the coolest, or blue, which are the hottest and also the youngest; blue stars are still in the midst of their formation. Dr. King showed photographs both of these stars in formation and also of some in the process of dying out. He mentioned that some stars explode when they die, creating fantastic images, while others die slowly and give out puffs of gas.
Importantly, while we have the ability to see other galaxies, we have no idea where we are situated within our own galaxy because no telescope exists outside of the Milky Way to take pictures of it in its entirety. Dr. King highlighted the different kinds of galaxies that exist, their differentiation depending largely on the age and status of their stars and those stars' locations. The Hubble, as Dr. King showed, allows us to see other galaxies in high resolution. Based on the Hubble's pictures of our neighboring Andromeda galaxy, for example, researchers discovered that Andromeda's center is much bigger than had previously been thought.
Stating the importance of astronomy, Dr. King said, "As we look at [objects in space], we're looking back in time." Dr. King explained that we see objects as they were when light first left them. As the most distant objects we can see are about one billion years old, astronomy allows us to study the early history of the Universe. The Universe itself, Dr. King estimated, is about 13.7 billion years old; we cannot see objects that are that old, however, because the Universe had to reach a certain age before it became transparent to light. Before this time, only radio waves were able to travel through space.
Dr. King concluded his "Tour" with a photograph of the Hubble, referencing the debate that is currently taking place among politicians regarding whether or not to service the telescope as would be required in the next two years. This question of servicing, Dr. King stated, is primarily a political problem as NASA struggles between maintaining both the Hubble and the International Space Station. The Hubble, though, according to Dr. King, "is the most productive science experiment ever undertaken by NASA."
Dr. King, after graduating from Hamilton in 1947, received his doctorate from Harvard in 1952. He served with the U.S. Naval Reserve and the Department of Defense from 1952-56 as a methods analyst, and in 1956 became a professor at the University of Illinois. He moved to the University of California at Berkeley in 1964, where he is at present Professor Emeritus. He was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and of the National Academy of Sciences in 1982. Even after all this experience, Dr. King still looks back fondly on his Hamilton education, saying, "It was just wonderful. I was like a kid in a candy store. I just love the breadth of Hamilton."
-- by Sarah Lozo '06
According to Dr. King, the Hubble, which is 350 miles from Earth, orbits the Earth 15 times per day. It is a medium sized telescope that transmits data to a ground station; this data will reach the observer a day or two after it was recorded by the Hubble. Dr. King noted the importance of having such a telescope in space, saying that pictures taken from space are not distorted by the Earth's atmosphere, as they would be if they were photographed from the Earth. The Hubble's sharp images, he said, are central to its significance.
Dr. King used some of these images to take his audience on a "Tour of the Universe," starting with a picture of the Hubble above the Earth, then moving farther outward to pictures of planets in our solar system, and then moving beyond those to photographs of other galaxies and distant star clusters. Putting the small size of our solar system in the context of the Universe, King said, "If our solar system was in this room, the nearest star would be in Rochester or Buffalo."
Dr. King also showed pictures of globular star clusters, his self-professed favorite aspect of astronomy and, correspondingly, his particular area of expertise. He noted that the Hubble allows us to see individual stars within these clusters and even to other galaxies beyond them. From a planet within one of these clusters, the night sky would have 10,000 times as many stars as we see from Earth.
Individual stars, he said, may be bright red, which are the coolest, or blue, which are the hottest and also the youngest; blue stars are still in the midst of their formation. Dr. King showed photographs both of these stars in formation and also of some in the process of dying out. He mentioned that some stars explode when they die, creating fantastic images, while others die slowly and give out puffs of gas.
Importantly, while we have the ability to see other galaxies, we have no idea where we are situated within our own galaxy because no telescope exists outside of the Milky Way to take pictures of it in its entirety. Dr. King highlighted the different kinds of galaxies that exist, their differentiation depending largely on the age and status of their stars and those stars' locations. The Hubble, as Dr. King showed, allows us to see other galaxies in high resolution. Based on the Hubble's pictures of our neighboring Andromeda galaxy, for example, researchers discovered that Andromeda's center is much bigger than had previously been thought.
Stating the importance of astronomy, Dr. King said, "As we look at [objects in space], we're looking back in time." Dr. King explained that we see objects as they were when light first left them. As the most distant objects we can see are about one billion years old, astronomy allows us to study the early history of the Universe. The Universe itself, Dr. King estimated, is about 13.7 billion years old; we cannot see objects that are that old, however, because the Universe had to reach a certain age before it became transparent to light. Before this time, only radio waves were able to travel through space.
Dr. King concluded his "Tour" with a photograph of the Hubble, referencing the debate that is currently taking place among politicians regarding whether or not to service the telescope as would be required in the next two years. This question of servicing, Dr. King stated, is primarily a political problem as NASA struggles between maintaining both the Hubble and the International Space Station. The Hubble, though, according to Dr. King, "is the most productive science experiment ever undertaken by NASA."
Dr. King, after graduating from Hamilton in 1947, received his doctorate from Harvard in 1952. He served with the U.S. Naval Reserve and the Department of Defense from 1952-56 as a methods analyst, and in 1956 became a professor at the University of Illinois. He moved to the University of California at Berkeley in 1964, where he is at present Professor Emeritus. He was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1980 and of the National Academy of Sciences in 1982. Even after all this experience, Dr. King still looks back fondly on his Hamilton education, saying, "It was just wonderful. I was like a kid in a candy store. I just love the breadth of Hamilton."
-- by Sarah Lozo '06
