Astronomy Colloquium

  Radio Astronomy grew from an  accidental discovery in 1932, virtually ignored for years, to a prolific window to a previously invisible  universe,  producing four  Nobel Prizes.  A major new international instrument, the Square Kilometer Array, is now in the detailed design phase and  next steps for complementary instruments  in the US are being explored.   A theme of the lecture will be lessons-learned from past history and application  to the future.  Some of the  gems of history leading to the start of radio astronomy at Caltech and NRAO will be recalled in the contributions of Jansky, Reber, Greenstein, and Heeschen. The current state-of-the-art and future directions of receivers will be briefly presented.  The evolution of the VLA will be described   along with the status of the  SKA and  plans for a next generation of the VLA.   Finally, I will present my views concerning some of the vital  global policies relevant to astronomy.