CFHT announces the arrival of Doug Simons as the new Executive Director, effective 1 May 2012. Doug
is something of an astronomy veteran in Hawaii, having spent almost his entire professional career either
observing with or working for various Mauna Kea observatories. He attended the University of Hawaii’s Institute
for Astronomy from 1986-1990, specializing in infrared instrumentation and research on brown dwarfs and
the Galactic center. In 1990 he joined CFHT as a resident astronomer, where he stayed through 1993. While
at CFHT, Doug was responsible for developing the “Redeye” near-infrared camera systems, which were the first
near-infrared facility cameras available to the CFHT community. He joined the Gemini 8-m Telescopes Project in
Tucson, Arizona, in 1993, where he focused primarily on Gemini’s instrument development program before serving
as Gemini Director from 2006-2011. Now, after 18 years with Gemini, he is rejoining CFHT, where he looks forward
to working with CFHT’s staff in Waimea and interacting with CFHT’s wonderful and increasingly diverse international
science community. Beyond his passion for astronomy, Doug enjoys upland game bird hunting, fishing, and woodworking.
He and his wife Judy, who attended school with him at the University of Hawaii, are the proud parents of 3 children
who have been raised for the most part on the Big Island.