What: Rita Colwell, director of the National Science Foundation, will speak at the University of California, Santa Cruz, as part of a dedication ceremony for the national Center for Adaptive Optics.
Where: Science Hill, UC Santa Cruz
When: Friday, June 21, 2002
- 1:30 p.m. Address by Rita Colwell, Director of the National Science Foundation
"NSF's Investment in Converging Frontiers"
Earth and Marine Sciences, Room B206
- 2:15 p.m. Media availability for Dr. Colwell
Center for Adaptive Optics Conference Room
- 3:00 p.m. Dedication of the Center for Adaptive Optics
Earth and Marine Sciences, Room B206
- 4:30 p.m. Reception and Open House
Center for Adaptive Optics
Details: Speakers at the dedication ceremony will include:
- Jerry Nelson, CfAO director and professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UCSC
- Andrea Ghez, CfAO associate director and professor of astronomy at UCLA
- Austin Roorda, assistant professor of optics, University of Houston, College of Optometry
- Lisa Hunter, CfAO associate director for education and human resources, UCSC
The Center for Adaptive Optics (CfAO) was established in 1999 as an NSF Science and Technology Center focused on the advancement and application of adaptive optics technology. Adaptive optics is used in astronomy to correct the blurring of images caused when light travels through turbulence in Earth's atmosphere, and in vision science to correct for similar effects caused by internal imperfections and fluids in the eye. The center is based at UCSC and has 27 partner institutions.
RSVP: Due to limited parking near the event and possibly limited seating, reporters planning to attend should contact Tim Stephens at (831) 459-4352 or stephens@cats.ucsc.edu.
