Leave a Comment Three new staff members have recently joined the MMTO. Joannah Hinz, Assistant Staff Scientist, joined us in July; Erin Martin, Telescope Operator, Sr., started in August; and Richard Cool, Assistant Staff Scientist, joined us in early September. To read more on their backgrounds and MMTO duties, click on the title above.
Joannah Hinz comes to us from Steward Observatory at the University of Arizona where she worked with the infrared group, most recently on data from the Herschel and Spitzer spacecrafts. Joannah received her BS from MIT and her MS and PhD from the University of Arizona. Joannah will provide support for observers using the Red and Blue Channel Spectrographs as well as work with the PI of the ARIES instrument.
Erin Martin joins us from the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. Erin received her BA in physics from Carthage College. She began training in August under the tutelage of the current three telescope operators. Erin will fill the position opening created when John McAfee retires in October after 30 years as an MMT telescope operator.
Before joining the MMTO, Richard Cool was a Hubble Fellow and a Carnegie-Princeton Fellow at Princton University (Princeton, NJ) and Carnegie Observatory (Pasadena, CA). He received a double BS from the University of Wyoming and his MS and PhD from the University of Arizona, where he had an opportunity to use the MMT for his research. Richard will provide support for observers using the Red and Blue Spectrographs. He will also look to identify ways to increase efficiency and help with facilitating the publication of MMT data.
