Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742-2421
Bio:
Prof. A'Hearn, an astronomer at the University of Maryland, has developed and pushed a variety
of observational techniques to study the structure and composition of comets. He and his students
and collaborators have developed a system for surveying abundances in many comets. They
have also developed the techniques for determining sizes of cometary nuclei combining optical
and infrared measurements. He has carried out spectroscopy at many wavelengths to study
particular molecules in comets. Asteroid 3192 was named after Dr. A'Hearn for his contributions to
the field of cometary science. As the Principal Investigator for the Deep Impact mission, Prof.
A'Hearn is responsible for the mission's overall success in meeting its science
objectives.
