Chad Trujillo’s work is described in this recent National Geographic article: Planet 9 may be closer and easier to find than thought—if it exists
NAU Astronomy & Planetary Science In the News
Astronomer recruiting volunteers in effort to quadruple number of known active asteroids
Through funding from a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) award in 2018, doctoral student Colin Orion Chandler in Northern Arizona University’s Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science launched an ambitious new project, Active Asteroids, which is designed to engage volunteers in the search for more of these enigmatic objects. The highly competitive and prestigious program, awarded to only 15 percent of the more than 2,000 yearly applicants, provided… Read more
Congratulations to Dr. Annika Gustafsson
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
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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We’re #1!
Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science (DAPS), doctoral students Natalie Jones and Christian Tai Udovicic were selected for a fellowship in NASA’s program, Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology (FINESST). FINESST provides research grants to graduate students working on projects relevant to interests of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
There were 32 fellows selected in Planetary Science this year (so, NAU had 2 out of 32). Last year, NAU students won 3 out of the 34 selections.
Over… Read more