SIRTF Profiles: Linda Hermans-Killam

IPAC/SIRTF Astronomy Education and Outreach

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To the right is a thermal infrared image of my son's pet lizard, Dot. Notice how infrared light can actually show us the temperature difference between this cold-blooded reptile and the warm-blooded human hand holding it! Helping to provide a new view of the world around us is just one of the reasons why I became involved in education and outreach. I have always loved learning, and growing up in the Adirondacks gave me a great appreciation for the natural world. In this wonderful environment, I had many opportunities to learn about the weather, geology, and the plants and animals around me. I also learned about the night sky and how it changed during the year. Science soon became my favorite subject in school and my hope was to one day become a science teacher.

After my family moved to California, I attended the California State University at Northridge (CSUN) where I earned a Bachelors degree in Physics Honors with minor in Mathematics. To help pay for my tuition, I worked at CSUN's San Fernando Solar Observatory. At first, I was the maintenance worker, and did everything from painting to cleaning toilets. I was then given a job as an assistant observer, and learned how to operate and collect data from the solar telescopes. During my last two years, I was allowed to do research. As part of the Physics Honors program, I had to complete an undergraduate thesis. To do this, I studied several years worth of solar data and discovered a statistical way to predict the eruption of solar filaments. For my thesis work, I received a student award from the Solar Physics Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) and was able to present my first paper at their next meeting.

The faculty and staff at CSUN strongly encouraged me to continue on to graduate school. I took their advice, and entered the astronomy graduate program at the University of Hawaii, where I completed thesis on solar chromospheric modeling, and gained a lot of experience teaching physics and general astronomy. Teaching, as well as getting into martial arts, helped me gain self-confidence and overcome my public speaking fears. While in graduate school, I received a second student award from the AAS Solar Physics Division for work on solar active region growth rates, and was awarded and ARCS (Achievement Reward for College Scientists) scholarship by the astronomy faculty.

After receiving my Master's Degree in Astronomy, I started work at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). My first position at Caltech was in the Solar Astronomy Dept. where I co-discovered a new class of phenomena on the surface of the Sun. After a large budget cut, I moved on to NASA's infrared astronomy center at Caltech (IPAC), where I worked on a variety of projects and picked up many new computer skills working in science support, for both the IRAS (Infrared Astronomical Satellite) and ISO (Infrared Space Observatory) projects. I also taught physics part time at a local college.

While one of my projects was winding down, I heard that NASA wanted its centers to become involved in education and outreach. I knew that this would be a great opportunity to combine my interests in teaching and science, so I quickly volunteered to learn HTML, and created an educational web site about infrared astronomy. Soon, IPAC developed a formal educational outreach program and I moved full time into the project. Today, I design and develop educational web sites, materials and activities for both IPAC and the SIRTF (Space Infrared Telescope Facility) project. I also give classroom presentations, and am in charge of SIRTF's Ask an Astronomer and IPAC's outreach help desks. If you would like to take a peek at some of the work I am involved in, visit our Education and Outreach Home Page! It is some of the most enjoyable work that I have ever done.

Outside of work, I spend my time with my family, going to soccer games, scout meetings, reading, hiking, working on arts and crafts, playing games and just having fun. When I have any extra time, I enjoy woodworking, playing my musical instruments, photography, and writing. I also have several science hobbies. I have a small weather station in my backyard, a bird feeding area for observing a variety of birds and other critters who clean up the leftovers, and I like to experiment with gardening and growing a variety of fruits and vegetables.

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