Harold Reitsema | |
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| Born | (1948-01-19)January 19, 1948 (age 77) |
| Alma mater | Calvin College New Mexico State University |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Astronomy,Planetary Science,Systems Engineering |
| Institutions | University of Arizona Ball Aerospace B612 Foundation |
| Doctoral advisor | Reta Beebe |
Harold James Reitsema (born January 19, 1948)[1] is an Americanastronomer who was part of the teams that discoveredLarissa,[2] the fifth ofNeptune's known moons, andTelesto,[3]Saturn's thirteenth moon. Reitsema and his colleaguez discovered the moons through ground-based telescopic observations. Using a coronagraphic imaging system with one of the first charge-coupled devices available for astronomical use, they first observed Telesto on April 8, 1980, just two months after being one of the first groups to observeJanus, also a moon of Saturn. Reitsema, as part of a different team of astronomers, observed Larissa on May 24, 1981, by watching the occultation of a star by the Neptune system.
Reitsema is also responsible for several advances in the use offalse-color techniques as applied to astronomical images.[4] He was a member of the Halley Multicolour Camera team on theESAGiotto spacecraft that took close-up images ofComet Halley in 1986.
Reitsema received a B.A. in physics fromCalvin College inGrand Rapids, Michigan in 1972 and a Ph.D. in astronomy fromNew Mexico State University in 1977. His dissertation was titled "Quantitative Spectral Classification of Solar-Type Stars and the Sun" with advisorReta Beebe. He has been involved in many ofNASA's space science missions including theSpitzer Space Telescope,Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite, theNew Horizons mission toPluto and theKepler Space Observatory project searching for Earth-like planets orbiting distant stars similar to the Sun.
Reitsema participated in the ground-based observations ofDeep Impact mission in 2005. He observed the impact on theTempel 1 comet from the telescopes of the San Pedro Martir Observatory (Mexico) with Kevin Walsh (U. Maryland), Ashley Zauderer (U. Maryland), and Roberto Vazquez (UNAM).[5]
Reitsema retired in 2008 fromBall Aerospace & Technologies Corp. inBoulder, Colorado. He is a consultant to NASA and the aerospace industry in mission design andNear-Earth Objects. He is the Mission Director for theB612 Foundation'sSentinel program that will find Near Earth Asteroids and identify potential Earth impact threats. He is listed inWho's Who in America. Asteroid13327 Reitsema was named in recognition of his achievements.[1] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 24 July 2002 (M.P.C. 46110).[6]
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