Columbia Star

1963        Celebrating 60 Years      2023

Rising star of astronomy makes parents proud





Dr. Scott Gaudi

Dr. Scott Gaudi

Scott Gaudi lived in South Carolina only a few months, but he has a fan club here led by two enthusiastic rooters: his parents, Bernard and Terri Gaudi. This club already enjoys national participation, one might even say out- of— this- world.

Dr. Scott Gaudi has built a reputation in astrophysics. He claims his career started in the second grade, and he gives highest credit to the remarkable woman who was his teacher at that time, Eleanor Gregory of Staunton, Illinois. She challenged her eight- year- olds to learn the names of the (then) nine planets. He found a

National G eographic book about the Universe and was hooked. He told his parents he was going to be an astronomer.

Some 27 years later, Gaudi has won some of the highest awards in his field and has been part of teams that have discovered seven new planets.

Dr. Scott Gaudi, a 1991 alumnus of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, will present a talk at the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum in Chicago March 5. The new U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, will preside. Arrangements have been made for his second- grade teacher to attend the function as an honoredguest. Gaudi’s childhood started in Beirut, Lebanon, where his father was serving with Westinghouse Corporation. Before he reached kindergarten age, he had been in multi-lingual schools in the Middle East, learning Arabic along with English. Then his parents settled down in Illinois and to no one’s surprise, when Scott reached high school age he stepped into the prestigious Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. His career has been on an upward path ever since.

His fellowships of distinction include the Hubble Fellowship at the Einstein Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J. and the Harvard- Smithsonian Fellowship for three years of study. He has published 76 scientific papers.

His work currently is helping to address one of humanity’s most fundamental questions: Are we alone in the Universe? To get an answer, astronomers constantly scan the stars for any tiny changes in motion or brightness that could signal the existence of faraway

planets. Scott Gaudi has pioneered techniques for detecting planets and determining their existence.

Last January at the age of 35, Gaudi was awarded one of the highest honors given to young astronomers by the American Astronomical Society: the Helen B. Warner Prize for Astronomy. His citation states: “for significant and broad theoretical contributions to the field of exoplanet research, particularly in the area of microlensing detection and characterization of planetary systems, as well as for planets detected via transit and traditional radial velocity techniques.”

Other honors include being named by

Discover magazine as one of Twenty Scientists to Watch, in 2000, and by

Astronomy magazine in August, 2008, as one of 10 rising stars of astronomy.

Last December, while visiting his parents in Columbia, Dr. Gaudi made a presentation at the South Carolina State Museum as a boost to their efforts to build a planetarium here. “Astronomy is a universal subject,” Gaudi says. “School children tend to be most fascinated by it, but it captures the imagination of people of all ages. Unfortunately, people’s innate interest in science tends to get suppressed when they are young because they are taught it is hard or involves too much math. Anything we can do to counteract that is essential.”

Bernard Gaudi’s career with Westinghouse took them to many exotic places in the world, including Lebanon and Dubai as well as Illinois and finally, Sumter S.C. They are now settled in a place they find very liveable and enjoyable: Columbia S.C. “Life is so easy here,” says Terri Gaudi. “And Columbia has fine resources, some excellent museums and music. We think it’s a wonderful place to live.”

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