The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

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John Raymond

Center for Astrophysics

Senior Astrophysicist

John Raymond

jraymond@cfa.harvard.edu

About

John Raymond applies spectroscopy and plasma physics in an attempt to understand the the heating of the solar corona, the driving of the solar wind, the nature of supernova remnant shock waves, sungrazing comets and the winds from black hole accretion disks.

PhD, University of Wisconsin

Telescopes and Instruments

Magellan Telescopes

The twin Magellan Telescopes in Chile are each 6.5 meter optical telescopes. These telescopes are both equipped with instruments to take images and spectra of light from a wide variety of astronomical sources, including exoplanet systems, star-forming regions, supernova remnants, and interacting galaxies. The Magellan Telescopes — named Baade and Clay — are hosted at the Las Campanas Observatory and are operated by a consortium of institutions, including the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, Carnegie Institution for Science, University of Arizona, the University of Michigan, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition, CfA scientists and engineers provided a wide field f/5 focal system (including secondary mirror and corrective optics), and a powerful astronomical camera for use at the Clay telescope.

Visit the Magellan Telescopes Website

Chandra

The Chandra X-ray Observatory is NASA’s flagship X-ray observatory, providing essential data on everything from the environment surrounding newborn stars to the emissions from hot plasma inside galaxy clusters. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO), as part of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, manages Chandra’s day-to-day operations, providing spacecraft control, observation planning, and data processing for astronomers. Chandra is one of NASA’s orbiting Great Observatories, along with the Hubble.

Visit the Chandra Website

MMT Observatory

The MMT Observatory is the premier visible-light and infrared telescope jointly managed by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, part of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and the University of Arizona. Located at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory (FLWO) in southern Arizona, this 6.5-meter (21 foot) telescope is used to study objects across the field of astronomy, from the Solar System to distant galaxies. The MMT has provided a testbed for new telescope technologies developed by scientists and engineers at the CfA and the University of Arizona.

Visit the MMT Website

Solar and Heliospheric Observer (SOHO)

The Sun is the only star we can study in detail, providing us with the opportunity to observe stellar internal structure, magnetic fields, and atmosphere. Solar and Heliospheric Observer (SOHO), a space observatory jointly operated by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), has been one of the best sources for that knowledge. Originally designed to operate for two years, SOHO has provided daily data on the Sun for more than twenty years, making it one of the longest running space observatories. During that time, SOHO has monitored the Sun’s atmosphere, surface, and seismology, using a wide range of scientific instruments. Scientists and engineers at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian developed the instrument SOHO uses to measure the ultraviolet spectrum of the Sun.

Visit the SOHO/UVCS Website