American Museum of Natural History. Department of Astrophysics

Exist Dates

1999 -

Biographical or Historical Note

abstract

The Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History was established in 1999 and took the place of the Department of Astronomy. Along with the Department of Earth and Planetary Science, it makes up the Division of Physical Sciences. This record pertains to the current Department of Astrophysics beginning in 1999.

The study of astronomy and astrophysics has had a number of departmental iterations since its inception in 1924 as the Department of Astronomy, then part of the Division of Mineralogy, Geology and Geography. With the establishment of the Hayden Planetarium in 1935, it became inextricably linked to the physical space, and would be known as the Department of Astronomy and Hayden Planetarium (1, 1936 p. 38). In 1953 it was renamed the Department of Astronomy and American Museum-Hayden Planetarium (1, 1953 p. 71). In the late 1990s there was a shift in departmental focus that coupled with the redesign of the Planetarium and construction of the Rose Center for Earth and Space. In 1999, the Department of Astrophysics was thus established, replacing the previous Department of Astronomy (1, 1999 p. 6; 2000 p. 17). Further, in 2000 Astrophysics became part of the overarching Division of Physical Sciences, which also includes its sibling Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences (1, 2000 p. 17). The physical space for the Division of Physical Sciences expanded in February of 2000 with the opening of the new Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space. Besides being home to the scientific departments, the Rose Center is comprised of the redesigned Hayden Planetarium, the Harriet and Robert Heilbrunn Cosmic Pathway, the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Hall of the Universe and the David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, which opened in 1999. Although maintaining a strong relationship with the Department of Education and the Hayden Planetarium, Astrophysics would retain a distinct focus on theoretical, observational and practical scientific research. This record describes the Department of Astrophysics as established in 1999. For information about previous incarnations of this department see the Department of Astronomy (record ID: amnhc_3000047) and Hayden Planetarium (record ID: amnhc_3000045).

Sources

(1) American Museum of Natural History. Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1934-2006.

(2) Mordecai-Mark Mac Low Curriculum Vitae [pdf] accessed from http://www.amnh.org/our-research/staff-directory/mordecai-mark-mac-low

(3) Rebecca Oppenheimer Curriculum Vitae [pdf] accessed through http://www.amnh.org/our-research/staff-directory/rebecca-oppenheimer

(4) American Museum of Natural History. "Scientific Staff," Annual Reports. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1934-2006. Note years 1948-50, 2004-05 and 2007 to present do not detail staff directories.

(5) American Museum of Natural History. Author bio: "Carter Emmart" in Natural History. Retrieved April 22, 2015 from http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/author/carter-emmart

(6) James Webster Curriculum Vitae [pdf] accessed from http://www.amnh.org/our-research/staff-directory/james-webster

(7) American Museum of Natural History. Grapevine (July/August 1990). In James Webster Personal File.

(8) Denton Ebel Curriculum Vitae [pdf] accessed through http://www.amnh.org/our-research/staff-directory/denton-s.-ebel

(9) American Museum of Natural History. "Hayden Planetarium: Staff." Retreived April 22, 2015 from http://www.amnh.org/our-research/hayden-planetarium/staff

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Related Corporate, Personal, and Family Names

employedBy

Abbott, Brian
associated dates: 2000-present
Abbott was Project Astronomer from 2000 to 2003. (4, 2001-2004) He is currently Assistant Director of the Hayden Planetarium. (9)

Arthur Ross Hall of Meteorites
The Ross Hall of Meteorites contains objects relative to the Division of Physical Science and opened in 1981.

Cullman, Dorothy
Rose Center donor

Cullman, Lewis B.
Rose Center donor

David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth
associated dates: 1999-present
The Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth is one of the educational exhibit spaces in the Rose Center for Earth and Space. It opened in 1999.

Department of Astronomy
associated dates: 1924-1999
The Department of Astronomy was the earlier iteration of the Department of Astrophysics.

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
associated dates: 1995-present
The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences is sister to the Department of Astrophysics within the Division of Physical Sciences. The two Departments are closely connected due to the shared scope and have alternatingly combined and separate since the 1920s, often sharing physical exhibit space.

Digital Universe
associated dates: 2000-present
The Digital Universe, also known as the Digital Galaxy Project, is a data visualization effort that recreates the Milky Way digitally is is critical to many of the work executed at the Hayden Planetarium. (1, 2001 p. 18)

Division of Physical Sciences
associated dates: 2000-present
Since 1999, the Department of Astrophysics has been part of the overall Division of Physical Sciences at the American Museum of Natural History. Its sister department is the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.

Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Hall of the Universe
associated dates: 2000-present
The Hall of the Universe is one of the educational exhibit spaces in the Rose Center for Earth and Space. It opened in 2000.

employedBy

Ebel, Denton
associated dates: 2005-present
Ebel has been the Chair of the Division of Physical Sciences since 2012. (8)

employedBy

Emmart, Carter
associated dates: 1998-present
Emmart is currently Director of Astrovisualization for the Rose Center for Earth and Space. He was first hired as Animator Artist in 1998, and was one of the original team members on the Digital Galaxy Project. (5)

Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space
associated dates: 2000-present
The Frederick Phineas and Sandra Priest Rose Center for Earth and Space opened in February of 2000 and took the place of the previous Hayden Planetarium and Perkins Wing. It is comprised of the Hayden Planetarium, the Harriet and Robert Heilbrunn Cosmic Pathway, the Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Hall of the Universe and the David S. and Ruth L. Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, which opened in 1999. It is the space for the Division of Physical Sciences, which is made of the Departments of Astrophysics and Earth and Planetary Sciences.

Gottesman, David S.
Rose Center donor

Gottesman, Ruth L.
Rose Center donor

Harriet and Robert Heilbrunn Cosmic Pathway
associated dates: 2000-present
The Cosmic Pathway is one of the educational exhibit spaces in the Rose Center for Earth and Space. It opened in 2000.

Hayden Planetarium
associated dates: 1935-present
The Hayden Planetarium is one of the educational exhibit spaces in the Rose Center for Earth and Space. It was originally built in 1935, then redesigned and incorporated into the Rose Center in 2000.

Heilbrunn, Harriet
Rose Center donor

Heilbrunn, Robert
Rose Center donor

employedBy

Liu, Charles
associated dates: 1999-2000
Liu was a departmental Astrophysicist from 1999 to 2000. (4, 2000-2001)

employedBy

Low, Mordecai-Mark Mac
associated dates: 1999-present
Mac Low was appointed Assistant Curator to the department of Astronomy and then Astrophysics when it was first established in 1999. He became Associate Curator in 2002 and in 2007 was promoted to Curator, a position he currently holds. From 2005-2012 he aced as Curator in Charge of the department and from 2007 until 2012 he acted as Division Chair for Physical Sciences. (2) Contributed digital and electronic collections to the department when it was established in 1999 (1, 2000 p. 18).

employedBy

Mathez, Edmond
Curator in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Chief Curator at the opening of the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth. (1, 1999 p. 28)

employedBy

Oppenheimer Rebecca/Ben R.
associated dates: 2004-present
Oppenheimer was appointed Assistant Curator in 2004, which she held until 2007, when she became Associate Curator. In 2013 she took on the role of Curator in Charge of the Deparment of Astrophysics. (3). Oppenheimer's work can also be found under the names Ben or B.R. Oppenheimer.

Rose, Frederick Phineas
Donor and namesake of the Rose Center.

Rose, Sandra Priest
Donor and namesake of the Rose Center.

Scales of the Universe
associated dates: 2000-present
The Scales of the Universe is one of the educational exhibit spaces in the Rose Center for Earth and Space. It opened in 2000.

employedBy

Shara, Michael
associated dates: 1995-present
When the Department of Astrophysics was established in 1999, Shara was appointed Curator in Charge and Curator, (1, 2000 p. 18-19; 4, 2000-2004) a position he held until about 2005, when he went to Curator position, where he remains. Contributed digital and electronic collections to the department when it was established in 1999. (1, 2000 p. 18)

employedBy

Summers, Francis Joseph
associated dates: 1998-2000
Summers was an Astrophysicist for the department from 1998 to 2000. He assisted with the content planning for Rose Center astronomy exibitions, and acted as project scientist on the Digital Galaxy project. (1, 1999 p. 30)

employedBy

Tyson, Neil De Grasse
associated dates: 1994-present
Tyson joined AMNH as Assistant Astronomer in 1994 (4, 1995) and was appointed the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium in 1995. (1, 1996 p. 23) Additionally he held the position of Associate Astronomer from 1995 to 2000 (4, 1996-2001) when, due to the creation of the department of Astrophysics, his title became Associate Astrophysist. He was responsible for all astronomical content in the development of the Rose Center for Earth and Space. (1, 1999 p. 30)

employedBy

Webster, James
associated dates: 1995-present
Webster was Chair and Curator of the Department of Astrophysics's parent Division of Physical Sciences from 1999 to 2007. (6) He joined the AMNH staff as Assistant Curator in the Department of Mineral Sciences in 1990. (7)

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