East Asian Observatory

04/23/2026

One of our comet observers let us know:
3I/ATLAS has dominated the comet news in the past year, and JCMT was prominently involved in the submillimeter observing effort.
We (Kuan et Coulson et al) were first to detect hydrogen cyanide in its coma.
This occurred early September 2025 when 3I was 2.1 AU from the Sun.
In December and January, post-perihelion, we observed strong methanolvemissions, enabling us to determine that the abundance of methanol compared to water was several times larger than has ever been measured in Solar System
comets, and that the temperature of the gas in the coma was a very cold 20 K.
Emission line widths were extremely (and, in a sense, commensurately) narrow;
3I/ATLAS has been in the deep-freeze for the past 10 billion years, after all!
We also detected carbon monoxide while other observers detected formaldehyde, amongst other organic chemicals.
All the chemicals mentioned are common in Solar System comets.

- Two 'telegrams' were issued at the time (CBET 5608 and CBET 5628), the HCN detection was reported in MNRAS (Vol 546, p1) , and a further paper is in preparation.

Thanks to Iain Coulson!

12/11/2025

EAO is looking for a new Head of Administration! Information is linked below, the application is open until December 26th 2025.

The East Asian Observatory embraces diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to creating a team that welcomes different backgrounds, perspectives, experience and skills. A diverse team works better, and we commit to making a working environment in which everyone feels empowered.

11/27/2025

The ASIAA/EAO Computing/Network Specialist job position is posted fo applications until December 4th! Apply here:

The East Asian Observatory embraces diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to creating a team that welcomes different backgrounds, perspectives, experience and skills. A diverse team works better, and we commit to making a working environment in which everyone feels empowered.

11/14/2025

ASIAA/EAO Computing/Network Specialist job available. Please search from https://www.rcuh.com/opportunities/job-openings/ and check under job openings (I'm an RCUH employee elsewhere, so it sends me to a link to log in - and their new website is not exactly easy to get through)

The Research Corporation of the University of Hawai‘i (RCUH) offers a diverse workplace where employees have the opportunity to work on scientific research projects in various disciplines. These projects focus on the study of outer space, the vast ocean, and the interactions between air and sea. T...

10/22/2025

A series of three images of the supermassive black hole Pōwehi, taken in 2017, 2018, and the newest in 2021, show surprising changes in the polarization patterns surrounding Pōwehi. Geoffrey Bower, Director of the East Asian Observatory's James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) on Maunakea, breaks down this discovery and gives a peek into what comes next.

🔗 Read the full story at bit.ly/Powehi-Black-Hole

07/19/2025

Exciting news for and about our former deputy director Jessica Dempsey:
Jessica currently is director of the Netherlands radio astronomy ASTRON. She has recently been confirmed as the future director of the Square Kilometer Array SKA:

The SKA Observatory is delighted to announce that Prof. Jessica Dempsey will be its next Director-General, taking up the post in June 2026 for a five-year term.