Records of the UCSD Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences (CASS), an organized research unit founded in 1979 to link space scientists and scientific departments on the UCSD campus and to provide a unified corporate umbrella to manage federally funded projects. Directed by Margaret Burbidge (1979-1988), Laurence Peterson (1989-1994) and Arthur Wolfe (1994-present), CASS has given administrative support to such research projects as the Faint Object Spectrometer, the Gamma-ray Observatory, the Solar Maximum Mission, and the Keck Telescope. Materials in this collection include founding papers, correspondence of the director (1979-1991), CASS committee meeting minutes and agendas, research proposals, and several miscellaneous project files. This collection is arranged in five series: 1) GENERAL RECORDS, 2) CORRESPONDENCE, 3) COMMITTEES AND MEETINGS, 4) RESEARCH PROJECTS AND PROPOSALS, and 5) ORIGINALS OF PRESERVATION PHOTOCOPIES.

The Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences (CASS) was founded in 1979 to provide scientific direction for the interrelated departments of Physics, Chemistry and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) at UCSD, and to provide a unified corporate umbrella to manage federally funded projects. As an Organized Research Unit, CASS provides a forum for the synergy of the disciplines of astronomy, astrophysics, space physics, cosmochemistry, radio astronomy, and plasma astrophysics. Furnishing administrative support for program coordination, contract and grant administration, and resource allocation (shared equipment, moneys and personnel), CASS streamlines and organizes university research groups including the Infra-Red, Optical and High Energy Astronomy Groups; the Solar Astrophysics and Solar System Physics Groups; and, the Theoretical Astrophysics and Cosmochemistry Groups. Administrators hoped the new unity would lead to interdisciplinary opportunities in scientific inquiry and in educational curricula and platforms available to UCSD graduate students. The extra administrative capability that CASS could provide facilitated the development of large research projects, such as the Faint Object Spectrograph (FOS) on the Hubble Space Telescope and the Gamma-ray Observatory (GRO).

4.0 Linear feet 4 records cartons