In 1998 astronomers from around the world gathered in Cape Town, South Africa to explore the possibility of building the world’s largest optical telescope in the southern hemisphere. This course will trace the path of that project from idea to reality, set against the backdrop of the newly democratic South Africa, emerging from decades of brutal apartheid oppression. Science, technology, sociology, politics, and economics intertwined to produce opportunity, adversity, and eventual success. SALT — the Southern African Large Telescope — is today exploring the furthest reaches of the universe. We will consider the why, where, how, and who that made this possible, with some insights into the personal side of modern science and technology.
Instructor Theodore (Ted) Williams is Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy at Rutgers University and former Director of the South African Astronomical Observatory. He has a B.S. in physics from Purdue University and a Ph.D. in astronomy from the California Institute of Technology. Ted spent most of his career at Rutgers, where he pursued observational studies of galaxies and developed astronomical instrumentation, while teaching a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses in physics and astronomy. He has spent innumerable nights at telescopes around the world, including observatories in California, Arizona, Texas, and Hawaii, as well as Chile, China and South Africa, and an orbiting facility on the Space Shuttle (Ted stayed firmly on the ground). He has taught a number of astronomy courses for Coastal Senior College.