Don McCarthy has been a research Astronomer, Lecturer, and Distinguished Professor with Steward Observatory at The University of Arizona. He specializes in infrared astronomy and engineering and has been passionately doing science education at all age levels throughout his life. He received an undergraduate degree in physics at Princeton (1970) and a Ph.D. in astronomy from The University of Arizona (1976). He was a Finalist in NASA’s initial Space Shuttle astronaut selection (1978) and served in the U.S. Army after college R.O.T.C.
Dr. McCarthy pioneered techniques for achieving high angular resolution at infrared wavelengths from both ground and space based telescopes by developing new techniques and instrumentation for interferometry, speckle imaging, active tip/tilt correction, and adaptive optics. With these tools, he initiated the direct detection of low mass companions to nearby stars, imaged the near-infrared emission from the Galactic Center source Sgr A*, characterized the shapes of circumstellar dust disks, discovered waves in Pluto’s atmosphere, and examined the surface characteristics of moons, asteroids, and Kuiper Belt Objects. He was also on the Science Teams of infrared cameras designed the NICMOS on the Hubble Space Telescope and the NIRCam for the James Webb Space Telescope.
Don has a passion for combining astronomical research and inquiry-based science education. His teaching philosophy derives from his love of both athletics and science and aligns well with Dr. Robert Yager’s essay “Never Playing the Game.” Each semester he taught multiple large enrollment, undergraduate courses in astronomy or cosmology to non-science majors with an emphasis on quantitative literacy and essential arithmetic skills and involved students in hands-on learning with unusual projects. Don also was a mentor in Greek Life on campus. His most satisfying publication was published in a sorority’s national magazine with the sisters of Alpha Chi Omega: “Alpha Chi Omega’s Surprising Connection to the Night Sky,” (The Lyre, 2017; circulation ~25,000).
As leader of the education and public outreach program for NASA’s Near-Infrared Camera project with the James Webb Space Telescope, he was involved with a partnership in science education with the Girl Scouts of the USA, involving adult trainers around the world along with graduate students and postdocs.