Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the context of "Harvard College Observatory"

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⭐ Core Definition: Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), previously known as the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, is an astrophysics research institute jointly operated by the Harvard College Observatory and Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Founded in 1973 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, the CfA leads a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, Earth and space sciences, as well as science education. The CfA either leads or participates in the development and operations of more than fifteen ground- and space-based astronomical research observatories across the electromagnetic spectrum, including the forthcoming Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, one of NASA's Great Observatories.

Hosting more than 850 scientists, engineers, and support staff, the CfA is among the largest astronomical research institutes in the world. Its projects have included Nobel Prize-winning advances in cosmology and high energy astrophysics, the discovery of many exoplanets, and the first image of a black hole. The CfA also serves a major role in the global astrophysics research community: the CfA's Astrophysics Data System (ADS), for example, has been universally adopted as the world's online database of astronomy and physics papers. Known for most of its history as the "Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics", the CfA rebranded in 2018 to its current name in an effort to reflect its unique status as a joint collaboration between Harvard University and the Smithsonian Institution. Lisa Kewley has served as the director of the CfA since 2022.

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👉 Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the context of Harvard College Observatory

The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, and was founded in 1839. With the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, it forms part of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian.

HCO houses the Harvard Plate Stacks, a collection of approximately 600,000 astronomical plates taken between the mid-1880s and 1989 (with a gap from 1953–1968). This 100-year coverage is a unique resource for studying temporal variations in the universe. The Digital Access to a Sky Century @ Harvard project scanned and 429,274 direct image plates, leaving nearly 200,000 spectra and other photographic plates yet to be digitized. In 2024, a new database, StarGlass, was created to combine the scientific data from the plates with the Plate Stack's archival holdings.

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Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the context of Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) is a research institute of the Smithsonian Institution, concentrating on astrophysical studies including galactic and extragalactic astronomy, cosmology, solar, earth and planetary sciences, theory and instrumentation, using observations at wavelengths from the highest energy gamma rays to the radio, along with gravitational waves.  Established in Washington, D.C., in 1890, the SAO moved its headquarters in 1955 to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where its research is a collaboration with the Harvard College Observatory (HCO) and the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. In 1973, the Smithsonian and Harvard formalized the collaboration as the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) under a single Director.

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Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the context of Harvard Plate Stacks

The Harvard Plate Stacks, previously known as the Harvard College Observatory's Glass Plate Collection or the Astronomical Photographic Glass Plate Collection is the largest collection of photographic glass plate negatives of the night sky in the world. The collection was created across a century by the Harvard College Observatory. Many of the people who worked in and studied the collection were a group of famous female astronomers called the Harvard Computers. It is a scientific and historical collection at The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Harvard College Observatory ← Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory ← Harvard Plate Stacks
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Astrophysics → Research institute → Harvard College Observatory → Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory → Cambridge, Massachusetts → Astronomy → Earth science → Space science → Science education → Ground-based telescope → Space telescope → Observatory → Electromagnetic spectrum → Giant Magellan Telescope → Chandra X-ray Observatory → NASA → Great Observatories program → Cosmology → High-energy astronomy → Exoplanet → Event Horizon Telescope → Scientific community → Astrophysics Data System → Online database → Rebranding → Harvard University → Smithsonian Institution → Lisa Kewley →