Richard Hunstead interviewed by Ragbir Bhathal in the Australian astronomers oral history project [sound recording]
- Bib ID:
- 3583589
- Format:
- Audio
- Author:
- Hunstead, Richard W. (Richard Waller), 1943-2020, interviewee
- Access Conditions:
- Written permission is required for research use, personal copies and public use for 10 years from the date of the interview.
- Description:
-
- 2005
- 3 digital audio tapes (ca. 195 min.)
- Series:
- Australian astronomers oral history project
- Summary:
-
Richard Hunstead, born in 1943 in Sydney, speaks about his family background, home life and childhood; his interest in science as a young boy; his education; how he became interested in astronomy; his scientific heroes and interest in music; his undergraduate days at Sydney University; his PhD thesis at Sydney University, "Studies of selected radio sources"; the production of the Molonglo Reference Catalogue; the significance of his PhD work; David Jauncey of Cornell University; the discussions about radio sources between Cambridge and University of Sydney astronomers; the construction of the Parkes Radio telescope; his working life; obtaining a teaching fellowship at Sydney University; the research environment at Sydney University; the discovery of pulsars and quasars; Cyril Hazard; the BL Lac object; spectroscopy of quasars; his discovery of 3C411; his paper with Martin Ryle; his further discoveries which lead to a reappraisal of much of the earlier work; the study of the Lyman Alpha Forest and the implications of this work.
Hunstead discusses measurement of metallicity and dust content of high redshift galaxies and the implications of this study; the effects of orientation in composite quasar spectra; the associated absorption in radio quasars and clearing of absorbing material around quasars with time; compact steep spectrum (CSS) quasars; the study of first massive galaxies with an international team; galaxy formation in the early universe; the ISI Australian Science Laureate; his postgraduate students; the Decadal Plan for Australian astronomy from 2006 to 2015; his concern about lack of access on 8m to 10m telescopes; Australian astronomy and industry; conditions for astronomical work compared to US and Europe; why Australia is a poor place for doing optical astronomy; his most productive work done at Sydney University; conditions for being a productive researcher; working on many projects and making connections between topics; taking opportunities as they lead to other opportunities; his long working hours approx. 80 hours; his major achievements in life to date; his family.
- Biography/History:
-
Richard Hunstead is a Professor and Head of the Astrophysics Group at the University of Sydney. He is one of 33 Australian Science Citation Laureates whose papers had been most frequently cited by other scientists around the world. In 1995, he was awarded the Robert Ellery Lectureship of the Astronomical Society of Australia in recognition of his outstanding contributions in astronomy. He is internationally recognized for his work in the field of quasars and radio galaxies. His discovery of variability in radio sources at low frequencies generated a large number of related research projects internationally. He has been leading an international team to find the first massive galaxies to form. This study will provide insights into the formation of galaxies and stars in the early universe.
- Notes:
-
- Recorded on November 3, 2005 at Sydney, N.S.W.
- Digital master available National Library of Australia;
- Index/Finding Aid Note:
- Timed summary (4 p.) and uncorrected transcript (typescript, 57 leaves) available.
- Subject:
- Occupation:
- Astrophysicists
- Other authors/contributors:
- Bhathal, Ragbir (Ragbir Singh), interviewer
- Related Records:
-
This belongs to the Australian astronomers oral history project.
This collection contains 38 records. - Copyright:
-
In Copyright
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- Reason for copyright status:
- Until 2075 [Created/Published Date + 70 Years]
Copyright status was determined using the following information:
- Material type:
- Sound Recording
- Published status:
- Unpublished
- Creation date:
- 2005
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