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From the Director Diffusing Hatred Through Shared Knowledge This has been a year of profound reflection by the world at large. The events of 11 September 2001 changed dramatically our view of planet Earth and in the year since our last Annual Report, little has emerged as a consensus of what to do to remedy the increasingly perilous situation. In that Report, I attempted to show how the Observatory's scientific research and all that flows from it can make a contribution to nourishing the peace and harmony that are essential elements for developing a shared view of life on this planet. Since ignorance is always at the source of hatred, shared knowledge of whatever kind must be a remedy. The Vatican Observatory is entirely dedicated to a common search for a scientific understanding of our universe and to sharing that knowledge with peoples of all ethnic and religious backgrounds, whether our colleagues in astronomy or the interested public. It is for others to judge, based partly on this year's Annual Report, how well we are accomplishing that task. In that regard, I would like to direct your attention to Section III. Observatory and Staff Activities, especially to the subsection on Public and Educational Outreach. There has also been growing interest in the Observatory's work in the science-religion dialogue. In response, staff members have given many public talks on this work as well as collaborated in the publication of popular articles for newspapers and participated in interviews for radio and television. These activities have occurred around the world • in Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe, and Oceania. In many cases, they have been conducted in collaboration with various government agencies, with Catholic diocesan offices, and in a setting of ecumenism. We are especially proud of the Symposium on Astrophysics Research and on the Dialogue Between Science and Religion that the Observatory held in July. The Symposium brought together 40 alumni and faculty of the Vatican Observatory Summer Schools (VOSS), drawing participants from 24 different countries and with diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds. A complete description of the symposium is found in Section III. Observatory and Staff Activities, in the subsection on Conferences. Reflections from an Italian Hillside Retreat In the spirit of a year full of reflections, a noteworthy event in the life of the Observatory occurred in July in a hillside monastery at Calascio in the Abruzzi region of central Italy. I had asked the Observatory's professional and support staff to gather there for three days of programmed reflection on the past, present, and future of the Observatory. We were favored with the presence of Father Delegate (Guillermo Rodríguez- Izquierdo, S.J.) who is responsible for our work to Father General (Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S.J.) the worldwide leader of the Jesuits. Guy Consolmagno, S.J. and José Funes, S.J. planned the program. They also surveyed our scientific colleagues, Church leaders, and other Jesuits to evaluate the Observatory's performance over the 25 years of my directorship. I would like to share with you some of what transpired at Calascio. Sabino Maffeo, S.J. provided an excellent review of the Observatory's history up to 1978, when I became director, and his account set the stage for our reflections at Calascio. In particular, Maffeo showed how the Observatory was initially founded in an apologetic spirit of defense of the Church, which had been accused of being anti-science, but that this changed over time to one of dialogue by the Church with the world of science. The lessons learned from this early period were many, but the one that stands out is that the Observatory must conduct quality research in astronomy if it is to represent the Church in any significant way to the scientific world. When I became director, the Observatory faced several problems that hampered the quality of its scientific research. Since the early 1970s my predecessor (Patrick Treanor, S.J.,) and his associates had realized that the light pollution from Rome that was encroaching on the skies over Castel Gandolfo would no longer permit observational astronomy to continue in any significant way. And, in fact, Treanor had been investigating a new site for the observatory before he died. A further problem was staffing. There were only two active research astronomers working at the Observatory. But there was hope out there, in the four young Jesuit astronomers lurking in various corners of the world. They had agreed, if I were appointed director, to join the staff and work together to make the Vatican Observatory once more a modern research institute. Three of them, no longer so young (and who will remain anonymous), are still on staff. As to relocating the observatory, a decision was made to open a research institute in Tucson, Arizona. You all know this today as the Vatican Observatory Research Group (VORG), founded in 1980 at Steward Observatory, University of Arizona. Other changes came swiftly after VORG was established. In 1985 we agreed to collaborate with the University of Arizona to build the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, which was inaugurated in 1993. In 1986 we held the first Vatican Observatory Summer School in Observational Astrophysics. In 1987 the Vatican Observatory Foundation was established as a tax exempt corporation in the State of Arizona to assist with fundraising to support our new telescope. In 1988 we awarded the first Martin F. McCarthy Jesuit Community Scholarship for doctorate studies at the University of Arizona by a candidate from a developing country. All of these activities, occurring over more than two decades now, were evaluated during the Calascio retreat. We are encouraged by the feedback, but the evaluation showed that there is still much left to be done. I've highlighted here a few problematic areas:
During our retreat, I was asked why I had chosen this time to call for an organized reflection on our work. My reply was that I had come to realize that in a rapidly changing world, we might run the risk of being driven by forces that were not consistent with our mission. We had to rethink our mission in order to reinforce it. Over the past decades Jesuits have increasingly been called to apostolates that respond more immediately to the need for peace and justice in the world. We needed to reflect on whether our work responds to that call as well. I believe that we have found our response in the conviction that where ignorance of whatever kind reigns, there is trouble for the world. Pursuing knowledge jointly with our fellow scientists and sharing it with all who dwell with us on this small planet does contribute to eradicating ignorance and, therefore, to diffusing the trouble that is brewing globally. We were a small group of Jesuits at Calascio's monastery; we came from five different countries; we shared a common dedication to our mission. We have, with the younger Jesuits preparing to join us, a well-founded hope for the future of our work. Research Highlights The Vatican Meteorite Collection The Observatory's research on meteorites, under the direction of Guy Consolmagno, is the theme of this year's Annual Report. The core of the meteorite collection was originally assembled by Adrien-Charles, Marquis de Mauroy (1848-1927), a distinguished agronomist and a "gentleman-scientist" of the old French nobility. A great friend of the Church, he donated a selection of meteorites--more than 1,000 samples--from his personal collection in 1905, and they were housed at the Vatican Observatory (Specola Vaticana), first in Rome and then in Castel Gandolfo. In 1935, Adrien-Charles' widow donated the remainder of his collection. Since then, the collection has grown through donations and trades to more than 1200 pieces representing 484 different meteorite falls, producing a collection that allows us to see deeper into the mysteries of creation. Current research on these meteorites is centered on understanding their physical structure, including the nature and extent of the pore spaces, cracks, and voids present in these rocks. The hope is that these studies will give us insights into how these samples were formed more than 4.5 billion years ago, when the planets themselves were being formed. These studies are being done in collaboration with scientists in Great Britain, France, Italy, and the United States. In addition to our own studies, small meteorite samples are loaned to researchers around the world. These scientists are working on a variety of projects, ranging from the measurement of the visible and infrared colors of the rocks (to compare against asteroids) to the precise measurement of trace elements (for clues to their chemical history). A more in-depth report on our meteorite studies is found in Section I. Astronomical Research, in the subsection on Planetary Sciences. VATT News Below is a round-up of our most recent results obtained with the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope:
Personnel News After three years as President of the Institute on Religion in an Age of Science, Christopher Corbally, S.J. has become the Institute's Immediate Past President. Corbally was also invited to join the editorial board of the journal, Baltic Astronomy. Gustav Teres, S.J., adjunct scholar of the Observatory, has received the Presidential Gold Medal of Hungary for his contributions to the dialogue between faith and science. On 22 November, Giuseppe Koch, S.J. was inaugurated Superior of the Jesuit Community at Castel Gandolfo. Since 1 September 2001, he has served as Assistant to the Director of the Observatory. We owe profound gratitude to Sabino Maffeo, S.J. who served more than twelve years as Superior, all but one of them as Superior of both the Castel Gandolfo and Tucson communities. He remains as Vice Director for Administration of the Observatory. In August, Marcelo B. Ribeiro, with the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, completed a year of collaborative research in cosmology with William Stoeger, S.J. at the Vatican Observatory Research Group (VORG) in Tucson. In June, Aileen O'Donoghue completed her sabbatical leave as a visiting scholar with the VORG and is back at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. Ivelina Momcheva, a citizen of Bulgaria who participated in the Vatican Observatory Summer School 2001, has been awarded the Martin F. McCarthy Jesuit Community Scholarship in Astrophysics. She began her graduate program at the University of Arizona in August. Nadya Gorlova of Ukraine, who received that scholarship in 2000, successfully completed her preliminary graduate exams in November. Vatican Observatory Foundation Annual Meeting The annual meeting of the members and directors of the Vatican Observatory Foundation was held on 1 March 2002 in Tucson, Arizona. The following were elected to serve as members and directors for a three-year period: MANUEL J. ESPINOZA, RICHARD J. FRIEDRICH, JOHN B. HENKELS, JOHN B. HOLLYWOOD, S.J., JAMES C. McGEE, PETER P. MULLEN, JUNE SCOBEE RODGERS, and FAITH VILAS. On the day preceding the annual meeting, members of the Observatory staff presented their research in a popular forum to friends of the Observatory and members of the Board. The next day members of the group were accompanied on an excursion to the National Optical Astronomy Observatories and other facilities on Kitt Peak, Arizona. Through the efforts of NANCY KNOCHE, Development Director, and JAMES McGEE, Chair of the Development Committee, the Foundation continues the two giving plans announced in previous Annual Reports: the Circles of Giving and "Reaching for the Heavens" Guild Memberships. At each Board meeting a festive dinner is held to welcome major donors into the various Circles of Giving, which have been named in honor of the following eminent persons in the history of the Church and science: John Paul II, Leo XIII, Gregory XIII, Pius XI, Angelo Secchi, S.J., Eusebio Kino, S.J., Christoph Clavius, S.J., and Georges Lemaître. Events of particular note that were organized by the Development Committee during the past year were: dinner at the Phoenix Country Club; reception, tours, and dinner at the Challenger Center in Peoria, Arizona; tour and reception at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago; lecture and reception at Georgetown University in Washington, DC; tour of the Rose Center of the American Museum and Hayden Planetarium in New York City, which was followed by a reception hosted by Board Member PETER P. MULLEN at a nearby restaurant; and lastly a brunch at the Arizona Inn in Tucson, Arizona, hosted by Board Member MANUEL J. ESPINOZA,. On each occasion, talks were given on the history and research of the Observatory. Once again, through the efforts of Board Member BRENDAN D. THOMSON, an official Vatican Observatory calendar for 2003 was produced with the theme, "A Bridge Over Time and Space."
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