National Solar Observatory<br />Sunspot, New Mexico<br /> <br />For more information contact:<br />Dave Dooling, Outreach and Education Officer<br />505-434-7015<br /> <br />October 5, 2005<br /> <br />Dr. Richard B. Dunn Passes Away<br /> <br />Dr. Richard B. Dunn, 77, Astronomer Emeritus at the National Solar <br />Observatory and a pioneering solar physicist who developed several <br />advanced optical solar telescopes, died Sept. 28, 2005, in Las Cruces, NM, <br />of a heart attack. He is survived by his wife, Alice Dunn. A memorial <br />service is planned for October at the visitor center at Sunspot, NM, on <br />Friday, Oct. 14, at 10:30 a.m.<br /> <br />Dunn was the third director of what was then the U.S. Air Force's <br />Sacramento Peak Observatory at Sunspot, NM. Sac Peak became a major <br />component of the National Science Foundation's National Solar Observatory <br />(NSO) in the 1980s. Dunn began his career at Sacramento Peak in 1953 while <br />a graduate student working toward his doctorate at Harvard University, and <br />stayed at the observatory until his retirement in 1998. He had been living <br />in Las Cruces, NM, and continued to work part-time at Sunspot until 2003.<br /> <br />"Dick Dunn's legacy is a major part of AURA's heritage," said Dr. William <br />Smith, president of the Association of Universities for Research in <br />Astronomy. "He has been central to the progress of solar astronomy in the <br />U.S." AURA operates the NSO under a cooperative agreement with the <br />National Science Foundation.<br /> <br />"Dick has left a lasting legacy for solar physics and will always be <br />remembered for his contributions to observational solar science field and <br />his engaging personality that provided both warmth and humor to the <br />field," said Dr. Stephen L. Keil, current director of the National Solar <br />Observatory. "Dick mentored many of the current generation of solar <br />instrumentalists and challenged theorists by constantly improving <br />observing capabilities."<br /> <br />"Dunn was recognized as one of the foremost experimental solar physicists <br />of his generation," said Dr. Jack Zirker, a past director at Sac Peak. "He <br />was one of the first two astronomers to join the newly established <br />Sacramento Peak Observatory in 1953. He was responsible for the design and <br />construction of many of the telescopes and instruments that made the SPO <br />one of the premier solar observatories in the world. His work was admired <br />and copied over the world."<br /> <br />"Dick was one of the great instrument builders in the history of solar <br />astronomy," said Dr. Michael Knoelker Director High Altitude Observatory <br />in Boulder, CO. " The National Solar Observatory, Sacramento Peak <br />Observatory in particular and the world community in solar astronomy have <br />benefited tremendously from his genius. Many young scientists interested <br />in instrumentation were mentored by him and grew up to be leaders at <br />observatories all over the world.<br /> <br />"I met Dick for the first time when I was a summer student at Sacramento <br />Peak Observatory in 1980. In all the years since then I enjoyed his sense <br />of humor when we met at Sac Peak Summer workshops. In recent years I <br />admired his strength in dealing with adversity observing how he stood up <br />to his illness."<br /> <br />In 1998, the Solar Physics Division of the American Astronomical Society <br />awarded Dunn its George Ellery Hale Prize, "For his bold and imaginative <br />innovation of instrumentation for solar physics, his discovery of <br />important new phenomena on the Sun, and the impact of his contributions on <br />solar physicists worldwide."<br /> <br />"Dick played a major role in the advancement of our understanding of the <br />Sun and its impacts on Earth and on space weather," recalled Keil. "His <br />work from 1952 to 1976 as an Air Force employee was instrumental in making <br />the facility at Sacramento Peak into the world's outstanding solar <br />observatory. When the NSF took over Sac Peak and eventually made it a <br />major component of the National Solar Observatory, Dick first led and then <br />continued to play a vital role in its telescope and instrument programs. <br />The Vacuum Tower Telescope at Sac Peak, renamed the Richard B. Dunn Solar <br />Telescope by NSF in Dick's honor in 1998, played a fundamental role in <br />developing our understanding of solar magnetism and activity. His <br />contributions, first as an Air Force employee and later as a member of the <br />NSO staff, made possible the worldwide Air Force solar monitoring system.<br /> <br />Much of our current knowledge of the solar atmosphere, including its <br />magnetic field structure, solar flares, prominences and the solar corona, <br />resulted from Dunn's work. Solar astronomers worldwide called on his <br />expertise in designing their telescopes. He also gave generously of his <br />time and energy to such projects, and thus was involved in the design of <br />far more solar telescopes than anyone else.<br /> <br />"Dunn's career was in large part, aimed at obtaining solar observations of <br />the highest possible spatial resolution," noted Zirker. "Only by studying <br />the small magnetic structures near the surface, he thought, could we hope <br />to understand the powerful solar flares that periodically disturb the <br />Earth. His instruments were, for the most part, designed for this purpose <br />and he was proven correct in the end. Most recently he pioneered the <br />development of special electronic equipment for sharpening solar images."<br /> <br />His landmark contribution was design and development of the 108-meter-tall <br />(356-foot) Vacuum Tower Telescope. When put into service in October 1969 <br />by the U.S. Air Force, the telescope revolutionized the capabilities of <br />solar telescopes. The innovative design employs a vertical vacuum tube <br />(more than half of it underground) with its instrument platform attached <br />so it rotates with the telescope tube as it tracks the Sun during the day.<br /> <br />By evacuating the telescope and by careful control of the telescope <br />environment at the telescope entrance, Dunn eliminated many image <br />deterioration effects. The success of his new vacuum telescope concept is <br />best measured by its implementation in several major solar telescope <br />constructed since then.<br /> <br />Dunn also initiated work that has led to new adaptive optics technologies <br />to compensate for atmospheric blurring in solar observing. His innovative <br />spirit was not limited to solar physics and ranged from musical <br />instruments to aides for the blind. His many talents and interests <br />included music, sculpture, and sailing. His quirky sense of humor was a <br />delight to his many close friends.<br /> <br />[NOTE: Images supporting this release are available at<br />http://www.nso.edu/press/Dunn.html ]