Notes for the PANDORA Atmosphere Program (1966-2007)

Eugene Avrett and Rudolf Loeser created Pandora, a general-purpose non-LTE computer program, over a span of four decades, from 1966 to 2007. They designed the program to calculate atmospheric models and synthesize spectrum code with a broad application towards solar atmospheres, other stellar atmospheres, and nebulae. Avrett devised and specified Pandora’s astrophysics and numerical methods while Loeser built the program and administered its ongoing use. Both men were affiliated with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

When implemented, Pandora supported Avrett and his colleague’s research on various specific problems of radiative transfer, which included extensive modeling of the outer atmosphere of the Sun and other late-type stars. Models were designed to demonstrate the effects of mass flow, the atmospheric response to external ionizing radiation, and the effects of ion diffusion.

The code itself is OS independent, although most of the developmental work was done using VAX/VMS. The code was ported to Ultrix, SunOS, and then finally, to Linux. This collection contains twenty-five binders of print materials relating to Pandora’s development and use.