
Bruce Macintosh
Bruce's main focus is the direct detection and characterization of extrasolar planets and the use of adaptive optics technology to control light. Bruce is Principal Investigator for the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument which was commissioned and saw first light in late 2013. Bruce will lead a 600-star survey to discover and spectroscopically characterize young giant extrasolar planets around nearby stars. A new laboratory will be used for developing exoplanet instrumentation for future ground and space-based telescopes, and applying adaptive optics to other applications such as microscopy. Bruce is also involved in preparations for the proposed exoplanet coronagraph on the WFIRST-AFTA telescope and other approaches to studying extrasolar planets.