Department of Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research Pages
Richard A. Crowe
Ph.D.,University of Toronto, 1984
Research
Dr. Crowe's main research interests are pulsating stars, stellar evolution and spectroscopy. He is a co-author on 47 scientific publications (16 first author), 25 of them major ones listed in the Web of Science, with a Hirsch citation index of 13. Dr. Crowe has also authored 9 articles, 2 of them major ones listed in the Web of Science, that critique astrology, UFOlogy, Mars "face" claims, and creationism. In 1991, Dr. Crowe was selected as a Fujio Matsuda Research Fellow by a University-wide committee for his scholarly work on pulsating variable stars. He regularly trained UHH student observers with the UH 24-inch telescope on Mauna Kea, and conducted many research programs on that telescope. In 2005, he won the AstroDay Excellence in Teaching Award for his efforts.
Dr. Crowe was Principal Investigator on the New Opportunities through Minority Initiatives in Space Science (NOMISS) grant ($675,000) funded by NASA, and a Co-Investigator on the Keaholoa grant ($2,413,000) funded by the National Science Foundation. These grant programs were designed to encourage local and Hawaiian students to enter careers in space science by working with K-12 teachers and integrating astronomy with Polynesian skylore, voyaging, and Hawaiian culture. While doing this, Dr. Crowe delivered over 50 StarLab presentations in both public and private schools, and participated in formal voyaging canoe (the Wa‘a Makali‘i) training. In 2001, Dr. Crowe and Dr. Alice Kawakami won City Bank's TIGR Award in Astronomy for NOMISS community outreach efforts. In 2002, he completed a revised version of Stars Over Hawai‘i, a popular book that integrates modern astronomy with Hawaiian skylore and navigation.
Dr. Crowe served as Chair for the Department of Physics and Astronomy from 1992-2002, and has been a member of the UHH Sigma Xi Chapter since 1990. For its activities while he was Chapter President in 1991-92, the UHH Sigma Xi Chapter was awarded the prestigious Certificate of Excellence by a National Committee. He also represented UHH at the 1991 Sigma Xi Forum on Global Change and the Human Prospect held in Washington, D.C., at the 1996 Sigma Xi Forum on Science, Technology and the Global Society held in San Diego, and at the 1999 Sigma Xi Forum on Reshaping Undergraduate Science Education held in Minneapolis. Dr. Crowe has delivered many public and school lectures on the subject of astronomy. He is a co-team leader on the Journey Through the Universe program, and he has been active in publicly promoting science education and critical thinking, having written 18 Hawai‘i newspaper articles on these subjects.
He has been a member of the Rotary Club of Hilo Bay since 2002, and served as Club President in 2007-08. Dr. Crowe is also an active amateur musician; he has played clarinet with the Hawai‘i County Band since 1986, and has been a member of the UHH Wind Ensemble, the UHH Orchestra, the University Chamber Singers, and the University Chorus. Currently, he sings with the Kanilehua Chorale. Dr. Crowe also accompanied on piano, acted in, or conducted several musical productions in West Hawai‘i, including West Side Story, South Pacific, and Company. In March, 1992, he performed Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue as a solo pianist with the Hawai‘i County Band.
Synergistic Activities
- STEM Faculty on Frameworks for Success in Science (2009-12). In fall 2008, the Kohala Center was approached to partner with elementary schools in Hilo in an innovative Math Science Partnership program starting in March 2009. The Frameworks for Success in Science will receive nearly $500,000 in grant funds over the next three years to bolster science education at six elementary schools in the Hilo School Complex. The Frameworks Project will bring resources and faculty from The Kohala Center, UH Hilo, the Aims Education Foundation, as well as DOE curriculum specialists, together to work with complex elementary teachers on improving science education in their classrooms. These partners share a common vision of bolstering science education for island youth. (Project Leader: Pascale Creek Pinner, Hilo Intermediate School).
- Co-Team Leader on "Journey Through the Universe" (originally NASA Challenger Center for Space Science Education), Hawai‘i Island. No formal budget. This outreach program (2005-10) builds on local school and community interest in astronomy and space science, and involves a team of professionals to deliver K-12 astronomy curriculum and training to schools (Team Leader: Janice Harvey, Gemini Observatory).
- Astronomer-in-Residence for the ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai‘i (2006-10). Developed educational and informational programs for the public (Galaxies Galore, Bye Bye Pluto, Hands-on Optics, Ohana Discovery Day, The Sky Tonight, Star Trek 40th Anniversary Celebration), updating exhibit information and training manual for volunteers, reviewing planetarium shows, training students and teachers in the planetarium, developing Hawaiian navigation curriculum for the StarLab Portable Planetarium, leading tours for the public, and answering questions from visitors.
- Co-Investigator on "Acquisition of a Small Astronomical Observatory on Mauna Kea". Total budget for this NSF-funded project (2003-09) was $465,000. This project aims to place a 0.9-meter telescope on Mauna Kea (remotely-operable from the UH Hilo campus), to replace the UH 0.6-m, in Fall 2009 (Principal Investigator: William Heacox, UH Hilo).
- Co-Investigator on "Hawaiian Values, Science and Technology: Advancing a New Paradigm for STEM Education". Total budget for this NSF-funded project (2003-07) was $2,413,120. This grant program was designed to encourage Hawaiian students to enter careers in science by integrating astronomy with Polynesian skylore, voyaging, and culture (Principal Investigator: Sonia Juvik, UH Hilo).
- Principal Investigator on "New Opportunities for Minority Initiatives in Space Science". Total funding for this NASA-funded project (2001-04) was $675,000. This astronomy outreach and curriculum development program targeted students of Hawaiian ancestry and their teachers in bringing the significance of the astronomy research being conducted on Mauna Kea to the wider community. The program also included observational astronomy research training and instrumentation for undergraduate students (Co-Investigator: Alice Kawakami, UH Hilo/UH Manoa).