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Leonardo Bronfman
Full Professor
Background & Contact Information
Ph.D. in Astrophysics, 1986, Columbia University. Magister in Physics, 1980, Universidad de Chile.
Research Topics:Molecular clouds and young massive stars, Galactic structure, Astronomical Instrumentation.
Areas of interest
Galactic distribution and physical properties of molecular clouds and regions of massive star formation: I carry on and participate in surveys of millimeter and submillimeter lines and continuum emission to determine statistically the physical properties of the gas and dust involved in the formation of massive stars. The most interesting regions are selected for individual studies at the highest resolution and sensitivity available.
Astronomical Instrumentation: Diverse projects are carried on at the Millimeter Wave Laboratory in the DAS, with support from CATA, the main one being the Optics for the frequency band 1 of the ALMA telescope.
Biography
He has been an Academic at the Astronomy Department of the FCFM in Universidad de Chile since 1983, and Full Professor since 1998. He was Research Associate at the ESO La Silla Observatory (1991-1992); Centre of Excellence Research Fellow at NRO, Japan (1996); and Visiting Scientist at NRAO, Charlottesville (1997). He has been director of the Astronomy Department twice (1993 – 1996; 2005 - 2008).
Since 1994 he led the Chilean participation in the site survey for the ALMA telescope, and in the protection of the actual site for scientific use. In 2005 he founded the Millimeter Wave Laboratory in Cerro Calán; from 2008 he led the area of Astronomical Instrumentation at the CATA/Basal. Since 2010 he has coordinated the installation and upgrade of the 1.2 m mm-wave telescope in Cerro Calán, for practical training and research in radio astronomy and instrumentation.
Awards and distinctions:
Universidad de Chile 150th Anniversary Award in Exact Sciences, 1992.
Presidential Chair in Sciences, 1997.
Rectoral Medal, Universidad de Chile, 1998.
Founding president, Chilean Astronomical Society (2000).
Since 1994 he led the Chilean participation in the site survey for the ALMA telescope, and in the protection of the actual site for scientific use. In 2005 he founded the Millimeter Wave Laboratory in Cerro Calán; from 2008 he led the area of Astronomical Instrumentation at the CATA/Basal. Since 2010 he has coordinated the installation and upgrade of the 1.2 m mm-wave telescope in Cerro Calán, for practical training and research in radio astronomy and instrumentation.
Awards and distinctions:
Universidad de Chile 150th Anniversary Award in Exact Sciences, 1992.
Presidential Chair in Sciences, 1997.
Rectoral Medal, Universidad de Chile, 1998.
Founding president, Chilean Astronomical Society (2000).
Courses, Projects, Recent Publications
- Completion of the first survey of molecular clouds in the Southern Milky Way, using the first dedicated mm-wave telescope in the Southern Hemisphere (1982, CTIO), Bronfman, Alvarez, Cohen, and Thaddeus 1989. “A deep CO survey of molecular clouds in the Southern Milky Way.” ApJS 71, 481.
- Derivation of the large-scale distribution and total mass of molecular gas in the Milky Way disk within the solar circle.
(Bronfman, Cohen, Alvarez, May, and Thaddeus, 1988. “A CO survey of the southern Milky Way: the mean radial distribution of molecular clouds within the solar circle.” ApJ 324, 248. - First complete survey of embedded young massive stars in the Milky Way. A&AS 115, 81
Bronfman, Nyman, and May 1996. “A CS (2-1) survey of IRAS point sources with color characteristics of ultra-compact H II regions.” - First complete description of the distribution and luminosity of embedded young massive stars in the Milky Way disk.
Bronfman, Casassus, May, and Nyman, 2000. “The radial distribution of OB star formation in the Galaxy” A&A 358, 521. - Statistical description of the physical properties of massive star forming regions in the Milky Way. Faúndez, Bronfman, Garay, Chini, Nyman, and May 2004. “SIMBA survey of southern high-mass star forming regions” A&A 426, 97.
- Ultra-sensitive polarization observations of the Cosmic Microwave Background.
Readhead, Myers, Pearson, Sievers, Mason, Contaldi, Bond, Altamirano, Bustos, Achermann, Bronfman et al. 2004. Polarization Observations with the Cosmic Background Imager” Science 306, 846. - Identification and characterization of the most massive and luminous hot core/molecular outflow in the Milky Way.
Bronfman, Garay, Merello, Mardones, May, Brooks, Nyman, and Guesten 2008. “Discovery of an Extremely-High Velocity, Massive and Compact Molecular outflow in Norma” ApJ 672, 391; Merello, Bronfman, Garay, Lo, Evans, Nyman, Cortés, and Cunningham 2013. ¨ALMA Observations of the massive molecular outflow G331.512-0.103” ApJ 774L, 7 - Installation and upgrade of the 1.2 m Millimeter Wave Telescope in Cerro Calán, for student training and instrumentation development.
Rodríguez, Finger, Mena, Reyes, Michael, and Bronfman 2014. “A sideband-separating receiver with a digital IF-hybrid spectrometer for the millimeter band” PASP 126, 380 - Design and construction of the Optics for the frequency band 1 of the ALMA telescope at the Millimeter Wave Laboratory in Cerro Calán. Tapia, Gonzalez, Finger, Mena, Monasterio, Reyes, Sanchez, and Bronfman 2017 “High Efficiency Wideband Refractive Optics for ALMA Band-1 (35-52 GHz)” Journal of Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves 38, 261
