About CSPAR

CSPAR Mission

The Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) at The University of Alabama in Huntsville is dedicated to developing world-class research and providing outstanding graduate education opportunities in the physics of plasmas found in natural environments throughout the universe. This includes the Sun, the interplanetary medium, the Earth’s upper atmosphere, other solar system bodies and extrasolar planets and planetary formation, stellar environments, the interstellar medium, and the basic physical processes and complex coupling that occur in these environments. To understand highly complex systems that possess multiple scales and coupled physical processes, CSPAR researchers employ advanced theory, comprehensive modeling, and instrument development programs for both remote sensing and in situ observations. In support of the UAHuntsville goals of promoting and building graduate education, CSPAR researchers collaborate closely with academic departments in supporting graduate and undergraduate student research activities in providing access to a world-class research center.

 

CSPAR is a leader in high-performance computing at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and in the state of Alabama. Its current computing capabilities include three distributed-memory clusters used in scientific computing and several shared memory servers and workstations used for data processing and visualization. Our systems currently include the following:

  • The “Bladerunner” cluster is the flagship of our supercomputer park. It has 400 2.66 GHz Intel Xeon cores, 800 GB of RAM, and 5 Tbytes of disk storage.  Bladerunner has fast Infiniband connection between the nodes.
  • The “Lupin” cluster has 128 1.4 GHz AMD Athlon CPUs, 128 GB of RAM, 1 Tbyte of disk storage, and Myrinbet interconnect.
  • The “Powerwulf” cluster has 48 2.8 GHz Intel Pentium 4 CPUs, 24 GB of RAM, 240 GB of disk storage, and Gigabit connection between nodes.

 

In The Beginning

Since 1986, the Center for Space Plasma & Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) at UAHuntsville has been dedicated to fostering excellence in research and education to understand the role plasmas play in space, stars, our Sun and and planetary environments. Dr. S. T. Wu founded CSPAR in 1986 and served as its Director until his retirement on June 30, 2005.  He has served at The University of Alabama in Huntsville since 1967 (~40 years). Dr. S. T. Wu is currently Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the University of Alabama System, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, The University of Alabama in Huntsville.

 

 

Division

As a part of the Research Division, some of our focus areas include:

  • Cosmic ray astronomy
  • Gamma ray astronomy
  • Gravitational physics
  • Space plasma physics
  • Optical remote sensing
  • Pulsed power plasmas
  • Magnetospheric physics
  • High energy plasma space propulsion
  • Low energy plasma dynamics
  • Ionospheric physics
  • Auroral physics
  • X-ray astronomy
  • Astrobiology
  • Space weather
  • Solar physics
  • Aeronomy

 

Director

Gary P. Zank

 

Location

Cramer Hall/ NSSTC
University of Alabama in Huntsville
Huntsville, AL 35899