Events

Physics Force at the State Fair

The Physics Force will preform two back-to back shows, at 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Physics Force at the State Fair

The Physics Force will preform two shows at 10:00 and 11:00 a.m.

Physics Force at the State Fair

The Physics Force will preform two shows. There will be a morning show at 10:15 a.m., and an afternoon show at 2:15 p.m.

UMN Compact Muon Solenoid group symposium

The Cmpact Muon Solenoid (CMS) group at Minnesota will hold a mini-symposium where some of the current work going on in the group is highlighted.  On Monday August 16th there will be short descriptions of our work both here and at CERN, which will be followed by a some talks by group members working on applications of machine learning projects. On Tuesday there will be talks about some of our hardware projects and lightening 5 minute (elevator) talks by our new grad students.

Universe in the Park: Lake Maria State Park

Description:The Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics (MIfA) invites you to join us at our free outdoor Universe in the Park events this weekend. At these events, attendees will be able to look through telescopes set up and directed by graduate students from MIfA, weather allowing. Our graduate students will also give a short (~20 minute) outdoor talk about space science or astronomy to set the scene. 

Please check this link for the schedule of locations:
https://cse.umn.edu/mifa/public-events/universe-park

Universe in the Park: William O'Brien State Park

Universe in the Park is a summer outreach program hosted by the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics and area state and local parks. This annual program is headed by faculty member Evan Skillman and graduate student Nico Adams.

At our events, representatives of the Institute will present a short (~20 min) outdoor public talk and slide show. Presentations cover a variety of astronomical topics such as: the history of matter, how astronomers "see," and a journey through our solar system. For our 2021 season, we will be giving these talks outdoors to ensure they are as safe as possible.

Afterwards, if weather allows, attendees have the opportunity to view the sky through multiple 8-inch reflecting telescopes, operated by the staff and provided by the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics. Additionally, we provide free star maps (e.g., www.skymaps.com) and are happy to show visitors how to use them. Throughout the evening, we encourage questions from the audience and enjoy discussing topics ranging from backyard astronomy to the latest scientific discoveries.

Through these events, we hope to convey the excitement of modern astronomical research while simultaneously providing an enjoyable introduction to amateur astronomy. Although a vehicle permit is usually required to enter the parks, the events are free to the public. Please join us!

Universe in the Park: Lowry Nature Center

Universe in the Park is a summer outreach program hosted by the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics and area state and local parks. This annual program is headed by faculty member Evan Skillman and graduate student Nico Adams.

At our events, representatives of the Institute will present a short (~20 min) outdoor public talk and slide show. Presentations cover a variety of astronomical topics such as: the history of matter, how astronomers "see," and a journey through our solar system. For our 2021 season, we will be giving these talks outdoors to ensure they are as safe as possible.

Afterwards, if weather allows, attendees have the opportunity to view the sky through multiple 8-inch reflecting telescopes, operated by the staff and provided by the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics. Additionally, we provide free star maps (e.g., www.skymaps.com) and are happy to show visitors how to use them. Throughout the evening, we encourage questions from the audience and enjoy discussing topics ranging from backyard astronomy to the latest scientific discoveries.

Through these events, we hope to convey the excitement of modern astronomical research while simultaneously providing an enjoyable introduction to amateur astronomy. Although a vehicle permit is usually required to enter the parks, the events are free to the public. Please join us!

Universe in the Park: Eastman Nature Center

The Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics (MIfA) invites you to join us at our free outdoor Universe in the Park events this weekend. At these events, graduate students from MIfA will give a short (~20 minute) outdoor talk about a topic in space science or astronomy. Attendees will be able to look through telescopes set up and directed by graduate students from MIfA, weather allowing. They will also give a short (~20 minute) talk about space science or astronomy.

Workshop on Quantum Materials: New Insights from Neutron Scattering

Center for Quantum Materials, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory present a workshop featuring talks by:

  • Simon Billinge, Columbia University
  • Collin Broholm, Johns Hopkins University
  • Morten Eskildsen, University of Notre Dame
  • Bruce Gaulin, McMaster University
  • Alexander Grutter, National Institute of Standards and Technology
  • Mingda Li , Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Sajna Hameed, University of Minnesota
  • Peter Littlewood, University of Chicago
  • Despina Louca, University of Virginia
  • Martin Mourigal, Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Sebastian Mühlbauer, Technische Universität München
  • Raymond Osborn, Argonne National Laboratory
  • Damjan Pelc, University of Zagreb
  • Natalia Perkins, University of Minnesota
  • Kate Ross, Colorado State University
  • Alan Tennant, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
  • John Tranquada, Brookhaven National Laboratory
  • Zhentao Wang, University of Minnesota
  • Stephen Wilson, University of California, Santa Barbara
 

 

 

 

 

 

Kristen McQuinn, Rutgers University: Dwarf Galaxies as Time Machines

Dwarf Galaxies as Time Machines

Abstract:
The smallest galaxies in our Universe encode their history 
in the age of their stars and in the distribution of their 
chemical elements, yielding some of the most precise 
observational constraints on galaxy evolution across 10 
billion years of time. Because they are also the most 
fragile of galaxies – susceptible to both powerful 
internal events like supernovae and external forces 
like the radiation field that pervades space – the 
survivability and present-day properties of dwarfs also
provide unique tests for our theories of cosmology. I 
will describe some of the measurements we can make from 
dwarf galaxies and how these measurements constrain 
our models of galaxy evolution.

School News

School of Physics and Astronomy Graduate Student Fellowship and Award Winners for 2024

2024 Graduate Awards and Fellowships

There are 21 graduate award and fellowship recipients in the School for 2021.
Undergraduate Scholarship winners in Tate Hall

2024 Undergraduate Scholarship Recipients

There are 39 recipients and 14 undergraduate scholarships. The winners are as follows.
Sabrina Savage and Lindsay Glesener at the launch site in Alaska.

Glesener part of NASA's first solar flare observation campaign

Professor Lindsay Glesener, of the School of Physics and Astronomy is part of a research team launching a sounding rocket to study solar flares. The rocket, named Focusing Optics X-ray Solar Imager (
Alexander McLeod, Nitzan Hirschberg and Alyssa Bragg

Inside Professor McLeod’s Nano-Imaging Laboratory

Professor Alexander McLeod’s nano-imaging lab creates novel ways to study materials as well as looking for new physics in those materials. Nano-spectroscopy is a technique that attaches conventional
Zhen Liiu smiling man in glasses and a blue polo shirt

Liu receives prestigious Sloan Research Fellowship for early-career researchers

School of Physics and Astronomy Assistant Professor Zhen Liu is one of only 126 early-career researchers who will receive a prestigious 2024 Sloan Research Fellowship.
Michael Coughlin and Alexander Criswell

Coughlin and Criswell part of comprehensive UV light survey

Assistant Professor Michael Coughlin and graduate student Alexander Criswell of the School of Physics and Astronomy are part of a new NASA mission that has just been selected to conduct a
Three School Alumni elected to engineering society

Three School Alumni elected to National Academy of Engineering

Three alumni of the School of Physics and Astronomy:  Martha C. Anderson (Ph.D., Astrophysics ‘93), Kei May Lau (B.A.,’76, M.S. ‘77), and Jeffrey Puschell (Ph.D., Astrophysics ‘79) have been elected
Michael Coughlin smiling man wearing glasses

Coughlin receives McKnight Professorship

School of Physics and Astronomy Assistant Professor Michael Coughlin has been awarded a 2024 McKnight Land-Grant Professorship.
Wall of Discovery shows the plot for the Humphreys-Davidson Limit, Professor Humphreys stands near it with Prof. Davidson.

Humphreys Awarded Medal from Royal Astronomical Society

Professor Emerita Roberta Humphreys of the School of Physics and Astronomy will receive the 2024 Herschel Medal from the Royal Astronomical Society for her discovery of the empirical upper luminosity
John Broadhurst

John Broadhurst, 1935 - 2023

Professor Emeritus John Broadhurst of the School of Physics and Astronomy passed away on October 17 th , 2023. He was 88 years old. John was born in England in 1935 and received all of his degrees

School of Physics and Astronomy Seminar Calendar