The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

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Ewan O'Sullivan

Center for Astrophysics

Astrophysicist

Ewan O'Sullivan

eosullivan@cfa.harvard.edu

About

Ewan O'Sullivan is an astrophysicist working in the High Energy Astrophysics Division, and since 2021 a member of the Science Operations Team (Mission Planning) for the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Ewan's research interests lie in extragalactic astronomy, working with colleagues to study the formation, evolution and physical properties of galaxy groups and clusters, primarily via observations in the X-ray and radio wavebands. Prior to 2021, Ewan was a scientist/programmer in the Atmospheric and Molecular Physics Division supporting the team of scientists working on the TEMPO atmospheric pollution monitoring mission and related projects.

Ph.D. (Birmingham, 2002), M.Phys. (Southampton, 1998)

Telescopes and Instruments

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

Lynx X-Ray Observatory

The Lynx X-ray Observatory is a proposed X-ray space telescope, designed to be the next generation following NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the European Space Agency’s upcoming Athena Telescope. This observatory will be able to take images of a larger area of the sky in X-ray light with better resolution than any existing telescope, allowing astronomers to study the first supermassive black holes, the hot gas surrounding galaxies as they evolve, and radiation from the earliest stars. Researchers from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and other universities are presenting Lynx to NASA for consideration in the 2020 Decadal Survey, with a proposed launch date in the mid-2030s.

Visit the Lynx X-Ray Observatory Website

Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO)

Scientists study the atmospheres of many worlds with orbiting spacecraft, but Earth is the only planet where we can measure the effects of life — and of the negative impacts of civilization. When it is launched, NASA’s Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) observatory will measure air quality in North America from a geostationary satellite, specifically tracking air pollution in unprecedented detail. The scientific instrument development is led by scientists and engineers at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and NASA’s Langley Research Center.

Visit the TEMPO Website

The Submillimeter Array - Maunakea, HI

Located near the summit of Maunakea on the Big Island of Hawaii, the Submillimeter Array (SMA) is one of the flagship observatories of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian. The observatory consists of eight radio dishes working together as one telescope, giving astronomers a window on a wide range of astronomical objects and phenomena: planets and comets in our own Solar System; the birth of stars and planets; and the supermassive black holes hidden at the centers of the Milky Way and other galaxies. The SMA is operated jointly by the CfA and the Academia Sinica in Taiwan.

Visit the Submillimeter Array Website