Passion for astronomy led professor to NASA

By Maggie Beidelman

In a world where the regions of outer space beyond our own planet are rarely appreciated, Dr. Dale Cruikshank looks beyond the monotony of daily Earth life and studies the intergalactic world as a research scientist at NASA.

Cruikshank, who teaches the Physics II Astronomy: Solar System class every Tuesday and Thursday morning, works at the NASA site at nearby Moffett Field. "Moons of the planets and the study of carbon and hydrogen are my specialty," he said.

Cruikshank is currently working on three NASA projects: Cassini, the spacecraft orbiting around Saturn; the Spitzer Space Telescope; and New Horizons, which is a ten year journey to Pluto that is scheduled to launch this January.

"It's a gamble," said Dr. Cruikshank about the success of space missions. "There's plenty of radiation and other obstacles to inhibit the missions, but we do our best and succeed most of the time."

The planets of our solar system have interested Cruikshank since childhood. In 1956, Mars came very close to Earth -- almost as close as it has been these last couple of months. When Cruikshank saw this, he immediately became hooked on the subject of astronomy.

Upon reading an article his freshman year at Iowa State University about G.P. Kuipera, a well-known planetary scientist in Chicago, Cruikshank wrote a letter to the University of Chicago. He was then accepted to intern at the observatory with Kuiper.

Eventually he followed Kuiper to the University of Arizona, where he earned his Ph.D. in planetary science.

He spent several years doing research for NASA at the University of Hawaii, before becoming a full-time government employee at Moffett Field in 1988.

When asked about his favorite part of working for NASA, Dr. Cruikshank replied, "The freedom to pursue what I want to do there." He doesn't have an actual boss, set working hours, or specific assignments. However, most of his work is peer-reviewed, which is often nationwide.

"Everything I do is self-motivated," Dr. Cruikshank said.

Over the past century, humankind has learned how to fly with the invention of the airplane, have successfully sent humans to the moon and back, and currently have people living in space on a man-made space station.

So much has happened over the course of such a short period of time that with the progression of technology, the possibilities of what else we might find in space in the near future are virtually endless.

"The thing I love most about astronomy," Cruikshank said, "is that these remote dots of light in the sky are actually other worlds. What more optimistic thing can we do than better humankind by exploring space? Unfortunately, there is an evident anti-science climate apparent within our government, which makes it difficult to get support for our programs."

Cruikshank, who has been a part-time teacher at Santa Clara for nearly a decade, describes teaching as his "antidote to the sterile government lab environment."

Teaching is his personal challenge to "hone (his) skills at taking a very complex subject and make it understandable to non-scientists."

Freshman Devin Bertsch, one of Cruikshank's students, said that Cruikshank has "an interactive teaching style in which he really helps us learn by involving each and every one of us through question sessions in class, allowing us to go deeper into what we are learning."

Encouraging students to take astronomy to broaden their perspectives, Cruikshank said, "It will help you find a place in the universe, but it's up to you to find your role in the universe."

How exactly is that done? Well, Cruikshank's advice is to "allow yourself to find a passion and do what you have to do to make it real. That's the greatest thing about my job. I found a passion, made things happen, and I am truly living out my life dream."

Contact Maggie Beidelman at mbeidelman@scu.edu.