Career

I am an astronomer by training and passion. My current position is distinguished professor of physics & astronomy at the University of Texas at San Antonio, a rising Carnegie R1 / Hispanic Serving Institution. Astronomical research and growing the UTSA space technology & operations ecosystem are my primary activities.

It has been a privilege to work with many of the leading scientists, engineers, and administrators from the astronomical communities in the Americas, Europe, Australia, East Asia, and South Asia.

Career summary (details: two-page resume)

2024—now   |  Director, Center for Space Technology & Operations Research (CSTOR)
2024—now   |  Affiliate Faculty Member, UTSA School of Data Science
2019—now   |  Distinguished Professor, UTSA Physics & Astronomy

2019—2024 |  Dean, UTSA College of Sciences
2008—2019 |  Director, National Optical Astronomy Observatory
2006—2008 |  Observatory Scientist, Thirty Meter Telescope Project
2000—2005 |  Leader, ESO Science Archive Facility
1997—2000 |  Leader, ESO User Support Group
1996—1997 |  Astronomer, US Gemini Project Office
1993—1995 |  Project Manager / Observatory Scientist, WIYN 3.5-m Telescope
1991—1993 |  Postdoctoral Fellow, Kitt Peak National Observatory

1984—1991 |   Astronomy Ph.D. student, U. of Michigan
1979—1984 |   Astronomy / Physics B.Sc. student, U. of Arizona

In early 2024, I completed five years as Dean of the UTSA College of Sciences.

From 2008 - 2019, I was Director of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), the NSF's national observatory for ground-based optical-infrared astronomy. NOAO developed, built, and operated astronomical telescopes, instruments, and data systems in Arizona and Chile. During my directorship, NOAO and its partners implemented the Community Science and Data Center (home of the Astro Data Lab), the U.S. Extremely Large Telescope Program (US-ELTP), the Dark Energy Survey (DES), and the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). In 2020, NOAO assets were merged into the NSF's National Optical Infrared Laboratory, NOIRLab. I co-led the team that developed the baseline concept and implementation plan that was approved by NSF.

I have extensive experience leading mixed, multi-program teams of scientific, engineering, technical, and administrative personnel, often across multiple international sites.

Throughout my career, I have made significant contributions to the design, development, and operation of observatories, telescopes, focal-plane instruments, and data systems for American, European, and South American astronomical research communities. My technical experience is broadest regarding astronomical data acquisition, processing, visualization, management, and storage.

My scientific research focuses on how emerging technologies and techniques reveal new insights into galaxy evolution over the past several billion years.

I have served on various international governance and review boards and held elected positions in the American Astronomical Society and the International Astronomical Union.

My degrees come from the University of Arizona (B.Sc., Physics / Astronomy, 1984) and the University of Michigan (Ph.D., Astronomy, 1991).