Stromfest 2008

A Celebration of the Scientific Accomplishments of Stephen E. and Karen M. Strom

Where: Westward Look Resort in Tucson, Arizona

When: April 4 and 5, 2008 (Friday and Saturday)

Abstract submission deadline: January 31, 2008

Registration deadline: February 28, 2008

Hotel room reservation deadline: February 28, 2008

We are pleased to announce Stromfest 2008, a celebration of the scientific contributions of Stephen E. and Karen M. Strom. The meeting will be held at the beautiful Westward Look Resort April 4-5 when the Sonoran Desert should still be in bloom. A block of rooms will be held at a special rate and we sincerely hope that meeting participants take advantage of this opportunity. Important deadlines regarding the meeting are listed below. Steve and Karen are aware that this event is being planned, but are not aware of the details so we ask that you avoid discussing this meeting with them. In addition, since there are more people who would love to share in the celebration than can be accommodated, the attendence is limited so we ask that you not discuss the meeting widely.

We are in the process of finalizing the scientific program, and hope to provide for a range of 15 minute contributed talks, but no poster presentations or proceedings. Our goal is to honor the achievements that Steve and Karen have made in many fields. Sessions are planned covering:

1. Pre-main sequence astrophysics
   Moderator: Lee Hartmann
2. Circumstellar disk evolution and planet formation
   Moderator: Lynne Hillenbrand
3. Star formation and young stellar populations
   Moderator: Hans Zinnecker
4. Formation and evolution of galaxies
   Moderator: Greg Bothun

The program will include reviews presented by Frank Shu, Doug Lin, and Lori Allen, as well as opportunities for Steve and Karen to defend themselves.

In addition to honoring Steve and Karen’s work, we hope presentations will show the exciting progress being made today, as well as prospects for improved understanding in the future.

If you have any questions concerning the logistics, please feel free to email Jane Price [jprice@noao.edu]. Any other concerns please feel free to contact the SOC [mmeyer@as.arizona.edu].

We look forward to seeing many of you in Tucson next April for this wonderful celebration.

With best wishes,

The Scientific Organizing Committee for Stromfest 2008 [Lori Allen, Todd Boroson, Suzan Edwards, Lee Hartmann Lynne Hillenbrand, Michael Meyer (Chair), and Sidney Wolff]

Steve and Karen’s career began in Cambridge, Massachusetts at Harvard College in the late 1950s, and later at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (and Fenway Park). They moved to the State University of New York at Stony Brook in the late 1960s to start an astronomy program there. In the early 1970s, Steve and Karen moved to Kitt Peak National Observatory (later NOAO) and began a series of infrared surveys of dark clouds for which both began famous. Early software innovations inspired by these surveys at Kitt Peak led to the development of image processing tools which many astronomers know as IRAF today. In the early 1980s, Steve and Karen moved to the University of Massachusetts to head the Five College Astronomy Department. There they established a large research group in star and planet formation forging long-standing collaborations with colleagues at the Five Colleges and the Harvard—Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. In 1998, Steve and Karen returned to Arizona, Steve devoting energy to long-range planning for NOAO and Karen to her work with distance learning and Native American artists.

Stromfest 2008 is sponsored by the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, AURA, and the University of Arizona. The Scientific Organizing Committee thanks the sponsors for their generous contributions.