Nuker Team
Encyclopedia
The Nuker Team was organized in 1985 to use the Hubble Space Telescope
, with its high-resolution imaging and spectroscopy, to investigate the central structure and dynamics of galaxies. The team uses the space telescope to examine supermassive black hole
s and determined the relationship between a galaxy's central black hole's mass and velocity dispersion. The team continues to conduct research and publish papers on the supermassive black holes of galaxies and clusters.
(OCIW), Sandra Faber
(UCO/Lick; First PI), John Kormendy (Texas), Tod R. Lauer
(NOAO), Douglas Richstone (Michigan; Present PI), and Scott Tremaine
(IAS). Later additions to the team include Ralf Bender (Munchen), Alexei V. Filippenko
(Berkeley), Karl Gebhardt (Texas), Richard Green (LBTO), Kayhan Gultekin (Michigan), Luis C. Ho (OCIW), John Magorrian (Oxford), Jason Pinkney (Ohio Northern), and Christos Siopis (Michigan).
, who addressed her five colleagues as "Dear Nukers". As the team began to publish its research, the name came into general use in the scientific community.
The name "Nuker" is also used in reference to the "Nuker Law", which is a description of the inner few (~3-10) arcseconds of predominantly nearby (< 30 Mpc) early-type galaxy light-profiles. The Nuker Law was described first by members of the Nuker Team, from which it gets its name.
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
, with its high-resolution imaging and spectroscopy, to investigate the central structure and dynamics of galaxies. The team uses the space telescope to examine supermassive black hole
Supermassive black hole
A supermassive black hole is the largest type of black hole in a galaxy, in the order of hundreds of thousands to billions of solar masses. Most, and possibly all galaxies, including the Milky Way, are believed to contain supermassive black holes at their centers.Supermassive black holes have...
s and determined the relationship between a galaxy's central black hole's mass and velocity dispersion. The team continues to conduct research and publish papers on the supermassive black holes of galaxies and clusters.
Members
The original members of the Nuker Team include Alan DresslerAlan Dressler
Alan Michael Dressler is an American astronomer at the Carnegie Institution for Science of Washington, D.C.. Among his works is the popularization Voyage To The Great Attractor: Exploring Intergalactic Space....
(OCIW), Sandra Faber
Sandra M. Faber
Sandra Moore Faber is a University Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and works at the Lick Observatory.In 1966, she obtained a B.A., with high honors, in physics from Swarthmore College....
(UCO/Lick; First PI), John Kormendy (Texas), Tod R. Lauer
Tod R. Lauer
Tod R. Lauer is an astronomer on the research staff of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory. He was a member of the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field and Planetary Camera team, and is a founding member of the Nuker Team...
(NOAO), Douglas Richstone (Michigan; Present PI), and Scott Tremaine
Scott Tremaine
Scott Duncan Tremaine is a Canadian-born astrophysicist. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of London, the Royal Society of Canada and the National Academy of Sciences. Tremaine is widely regarded as one of the world's leading astrophysicists for his contributions to the theory of solar system...
(IAS). Later additions to the team include Ralf Bender (Munchen), Alexei V. Filippenko
Alexei Filippenko
Alexei Vladimir Filippenko is an American astrophysicist and professor of astronomy at the University of California, Berkeley. Filippenko received a Bachelor of Arts in physics from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1979 and a Ph.D...
(Berkeley), Karl Gebhardt (Texas), Richard Green (LBTO), Kayhan Gultekin (Michigan), Luis C. Ho (OCIW), John Magorrian (Oxford), Jason Pinkney (Ohio Northern), and Christos Siopis (Michigan).
Etymology
The name "Nuker" began as an informal internal reference by members of the team to each other, because they came together to study the nuclei of galaxies using the space telescope. The first use of the name was in a 1989 email from FaberSandra M. Faber
Sandra Moore Faber is a University Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and works at the Lick Observatory.In 1966, she obtained a B.A., with high honors, in physics from Swarthmore College....
, who addressed her five colleagues as "Dear Nukers". As the team began to publish its research, the name came into general use in the scientific community.
The name "Nuker" is also used in reference to the "Nuker Law", which is a description of the inner few (~3-10) arcseconds of predominantly nearby (< 30 Mpc) early-type galaxy light-profiles. The Nuker Law was described first by members of the Nuker Team, from which it gets its name.
Sources
- Stern, S. Alan, Our Universe: The Thrill of Extragalactic Exploration As Told by Leading Experts, Cambridge University Press, 2001 ISBN 0-521-78330-5 and ISBN 0-521-78907-9