Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

<p>The Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), previously known as the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, is an <a href="/facts/Astrophysics/krFPRWLA">astrophysics</a> <a href="/facts/Research_institute/h1CjvE4X">research institute</a> jointly operated by the <a href="/facts/Harvard_College_Observatory/VaeaI4U6">Harvard College Observatory</a> and <a href="/facts/Smithsonian_Astrophysical_Observatory/1Bz2ApPt">Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory</a>. Founded in 1973 and headquartered in <a href="/facts/Cambridge%2c_Massachusetts/k9UMIJ7U">Cambridge, Massachusetts</a>, United States, the CfA leads a broad program of research in <a href="/facts/Astronomy/0ArJVM1p">astronomy</a>, <a href="/facts/Astrophysics/krFPRWLA">astrophysics</a>, <a href="/facts/Earth_science/rQsXCSbM">Earth</a> and <a href="/facts/Space_science/Q7dCLVdN">space sciences</a>, as well as <a href="/facts/Science_education/lxLmFxcq">science education</a>. The CfA either leads or participates in the development and operations of more than fifteen <a href="/facts/Ground-based_telescope/mY8okufP">ground-</a> and <a href="/facts/Space_telescope/BtI46sDX">space-based</a> astronomical research <a href="/facts/Observatory/y0FVg7vS">observatories</a> across the <a href="/facts/Electromagnetic_spectrum/24LARvFY">electromagnetic spectrum</a>, including the forthcoming <a href="/facts/Giant_Magellan_Telescope/A1g7gz9P">Giant Magellan Telescope</a> (GMT) and the <a href="/facts/Chandra_X-ray_Observatory/zU89xG3a">Chandra X-ray Observatory</a>, one of <a href="/facts/NASA/TIMCV0yV">NASA</a>'s <a href="/facts/Great_Observatories_program/KNFpk4V8">Great Observatories</a>.
</p><p>Hosting more than 850 scientists, engineers, and support staff, the CfA is among the largest astronomical research institutes in the world. Its projects have included Nobel Prize-winning advances in <a href="/facts/Cosmology/yM19zM7Y">cosmology</a> and <a href="/facts/High-energy_astronomy/WuJkQtDt">high energy astrophysics</a>, the discovery of many <a href="/facts/Exoplanet/zjfmqfUf">exoplanets</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Event_Horizon_Telescope/msJwLooR">first image of a black hole</a>. The CfA also serves a major role in the global <a href="/facts/Scientific_community/0YIPcVzE">astrophysics research community</a>: the CfA's <a href="/facts/Astrophysics_Data_System/abKVsgvU">Astrophysics Data System</a> (ADS), for example, has been universally adopted as the world's <a href="/facts/Online_database/Y00puBEg">online database</a> of astronomy and physics papers.  Known for most of its history as the "Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics", the CfA <a href="/facts/Rebranding/WRoFW2eq">rebranded</a> in 2018 to its current name in an effort to reflect its unique status as a joint collaboration between <a href="/facts/Harvard_University/Lhy9L1cx">Harvard University</a> and the <a href="/facts/Smithsonian_Institution/pqC74ta9">Smithsonian Institution</a>. <a href="/facts/Lisa_Kewley/R42Hvl8o">Lisa Kewley</a> has served as the director of the CfA since 2022.
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Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics open-in-new

Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics