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Helioseismology is
a relatively new field of Solar Physics, whereby the internal
structure and dynamics of the sun can be studied. Discovered
in 1960 by Robert Leighton at the 60-FT Solar Tower, the
sun was found to oscillate in a period of about 5 minutes.
In other words, the sun experiences a solarquake every
5 minutes. Wavelike motions are not just confined to the
surface; they also travel into the sun, where they get
trapped in accoustical cavities. In 1970 Roger Ulrich
devised the theory by which these solar harmonics could
be studied. By monitoring these oscillations on the surface
of the sun, solar physicists can indirectly monitor its
internal dynamics, and learn more about what goes on inside
the sun. This procedure is similar to how geophysicists
learn about the internal structure of the earth by studying
the motions of waves from earthquakes and man-made explosions.
Since the sun is so active, helioseismologists can study
the sun on a continuous basis to develop an internal model
of the sun. To learn more about helioseismolgy see the
link to http://helios.tuc.noao.edu/helio.html. |
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Ed Rhodes leads
an active program in both ground- and space-based observational
helioseismology. One of the pioneers in this field of
solar physics he is a NASA-selected Co-Investigator
on the Solar Oscillation Investigation (SOI). The SOI-Michelson
Doppler Imager flys onboard the NASA-ESA Solar and Heliospheric
Observatory spacecraft. Dr. Rhodes is the Principal-Investigator
for the 60-Foot
Solar Tower at Mt. Wilson Observatory and the High Degree
Helioseismic Network (HiDHN). This network onsists
of a second station in Ukraine, at the Crimean Astrophysical
Observatory. HiDHN provides nearly continuous observations
of the sun during the summer months. Beginning in 1992
Ed Rhodes served as a Guest Computational Investigator
in the NASA High Performance Computing and Communication
Program. As part of this program he and his group employed
several NASA-supported supercomputers located at Caltech
and at JPL. These computers are still used in addition
to a network of dedicated workstations located both
at USC and the 60 Foot Solar Tower.
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Publications
Educational Background: B.S. Magna
Cum Laude Physics, University of California, Los Angeles,
1968; M.A. Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles,
1971; Ph.D. Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles,
1977.
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