James Graham

  • Methane Enshrouds Nearby Jupiter-like Exoplanet

    August 24, 2015

    From article by Robert Sanders: "The Gemini Planet Imager has discovered and photographed its first planet, a methane-enshrouded gas giant much like Jupiter that may hold the key to understanding how large planets form in the swirling accretion disks around stars. The GPI instrument, which is mounted on the 8-meter Gemini South telescope in Chile, is the size of a small car and was designed, built and optimized for imaging and analyzing the atmospheres of faint Jupiter-like planets next to bright stars, thanks to a device that masks the star’s glare. “This is exactly the kind of planet we envisioned…

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  • UC Berkeley Astronomers Lead New NASA-Funded Search for Habitable Planets

    April 22, 2015

    Department of Astronomy faculty member James Graham will lead one of the 16 new projects funded by NASA in efforts to streamline the search for habitable planets. The project is part of the newly announced NExSS (Nexus for Exoplanet System Science) which seeks to bring together "the best and the brightest" to oversee the search.  The Berkeley "exoplanets unveiled" project, which will work alongside scientists at Stanford, is unique due to it's involvement of the "Gemini Planet Imager, a new instrument for the Gemini Observatory that began its exoplanet survey in November 2014; GPI has already imaged two previously known exo-planets and disks…

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  • James Graham Awarded 2007 Noyce Award

    May 1, 2007

      James Graham was honored this month with the Noyce Award which recognizes excellence in undergraduate teaching and curriculum development by a tenure-track faculty member in the physical sciences. He has taught undergraduates at Cal for more than a decade and is well known for his work in the undergraduate optical and infrared laboratory. Lauren Anderson, a junior astronomy major commented on Dr. Graham's teaching style: "In most of my classes, I listen to a lecture, then take an exam," she said. "But Prof. Graham's style of teaching is radically different. His enthusiasm and encouragement of participation creates an environment…

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