Charles Beichman
Executive Director
NASA Exoplanet Science Institute
California Institute of Technology & Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Dr. Beichmanhas been a leader in infrared astronomy from space and conducting all-sky surveys for over 30 years, with key leadership roles in the IRAS and 2MASS sky surveys as well as playing important roles in the science teams for numerous NASA space projects: some successful, e.g. IRAS and the MIPS instrument on the Spitzer Space Telescope; some pending, e.g. the NIRCam instrument on JWST; and some that never made it to the launch pad including the Space Interferometer Mission (SIM) and the Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF). Dr. Beichman's research has focused on the formation and evolution of planetary systems, from protostellar and debris disks to direct images of young planets. As Chief Scientist for Astrophysics at the Jet Propulsion he laid the framework for NASA's on-going program in exoplanet exploration. He now heads NASA's Exoplanet Science Institute.
