Congratulations to Dr. Annika Gustafsson, who successfully defended her doctoral dissertation entitled, Grain Size Characteristics of Primordial Small Bodies in the Solar System under the supervision of Nick Moskovitz (Lowell Observatory) and Cristina Thomas (NAU) She will be a postdoctoral fellow at the Southwest… Read more
Astronomy
Here comes the Sun: NAU planetary scientists find evidence of solar-driven change on the Moon
A new study led by Northern Arizona University doctoral candidate Christian J. Tai Udovicic, in collaboration with associate professor Christopher Edwards, both of NAU’s Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, uncovered important clues to help understand the surprisingly active lunar surface. In an article recently published in Geophysical Research Letters, the scientists found that solar radiation could be a more important source of lunar iron nanoparticles than previously thought.
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Prestigious NSF CAREER award supports integration of research, undergraduate training in parallel computing
Computer scientist and astroinformaticist Mike Gowanlock, an assistant professor at Northern Arizona University’s School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, was recently awarded a $411,964 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The award will support Gowanlock’s research in the emerging field of parallel computing architectures needed to process large volumes of data generated by major astronomical surveys, including the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST).
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Students from minority communities explore space
Northern Arizona University professor David Trilling, chair of the Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, is one of the leaders of a major new project funded through a $900,000 grant from the Heising-Simons Foundation. The project’s goal is to increase the readiness of astronomy researchers from minority communities for an upcoming effort designed to lay the groundwork for the launch of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.
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Dark matter amid the dark skies: In four years at NAU, research takes grad to the ends of the universe
As a first-year student at NAU, Megan Gialluca walked into astronomy professor Ty Robinson’s office, introduced herself and told him she was interested in doing research with him.
Four years later, she’s leaving NAU as a Goldwater Scholar and with three years of funding for a Ph.D. in hand as a recipient of the NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) award.
Gialluca graduated in April with a degree in astronomy and has spent… Read more
NASA recognizes NAU planetary scientist with prestigious Early Career Award
NASA has selected Northern Arizona University assistant research professor Alicia Rutledge as one of only five early-career scientists in the country to receive funding through its Planetary Science Early Career Award (ECA) program, which “supports outstanding early-career individuals and allows them to play an increasing role in the planetary science community.”
Rutledge’s proposal, “Ice, Ice, Rock: Analog Studies in Cold Environments to Understand Past Climate,” which was selected for an award of… Read more