Jul 01, 2022 | by Theresa D'Orsi | Dartmouth Engineer
From volcanic summits to the world’s largest marine iguanas, the Galápagos Islands have much to explore. Those joining a recent Dartmouth alumni trip led by Professor Eric Fossum made particularly well-informed observations using technology invented by Fossum, the John H. Krehbiel Sr. Professor for Emerging Technologies at Dartmouth.
Professor Eric Fossum led an alumni trip to the Galápagos, where he captured memories using technology he invented.
The voyage’s faculty leader and expert, Fossum invented the CMOS active pixel image sensor, now an integral part of every modern digital camera and cell phone.
“It was fun to share some aspects of everyday camera technology evolution, including my contributions from the past and those underway today in my lab at Dartmouth,” he says. “It gave my wife, Susan, and me a chance to explore the curious evolutionary science of the Galápagos—from volcanoes to life at the intersection of lava and the sea—and to meet some fascinating Dartmouth alumni and experience the Galápagos with them.”
Fossum originally developed the technology while working at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Caltech for the purpose of interplanetary spacecraft travel, not knowing that his invention would have such a broad impact on society.
From the National Geographic Islander, the group explored both land and sea. They climbed volcanic summits, went snorkeling and kayaking, and observed sea lions, whales, dolphins, flightless cormorants, giant tortoises, and other wildlife. “You definitely want to take memories from here. The special tool that we have been using to do this is digital cameras,” says naturalist and National Geographic educator Gianna Haro. For that reason, she says, “it has been an honor to have Professor Fossum on board.”
This article appeared in the Spring 2021 issue of the Dartmouth Engineer magazine.
For contacts and other media information visit our Media Resources page.
