Recent News
At a recent workshop, researchers and journalists debated how to announce a potential discovery of extraterrestrial life. Victoria Meadows, professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.Featured
on Scientific American
Seattle’s cloudy weather made for an anticlimactic viewing of Monday’s solar eclipse. Still, that didn’t stop dozens of people who flocked to the UW’s Physics-Astronomy Building, hoping for the clouds to lift, so they could catch a glimpse of this once-in-a-generation event. The UW's Oliver Fraser, assistant teaching professor in astronomy, and Giovanni Gollotti, a student, are quoted.… Read more
Eclipses past and present arenât just opportunities for incredible sights. Generations of researchers have used them to study phenomena ranging from the sun itself to the fabric of the universe. UW News intervewed Emily Levesque, author and associate professor of astronomy, about what scientists past and present have learned by studying eclipses.Featured
on UW News
Jessica Werk has officially assumed her new role as the new Chair of the Department of Astronomy. With each new appointment comes the promise of fresh perspectives and renewed energy, and we are grateful and excited to support Jess in this role! As we extend our warmest welcome to Jess, let us also express our gratitude to Tom Quinn for his leadership, contributions, and steadfast dedication to the department. Thank you, Tom!
Brittany Kamai, an astrophysicist with knowledge of Pacific Islanders' Indigenous navigation using the sky, is teaching a new UW course, Pacific Indigenous Astrophysics.
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reading on UW College of Arts & Sciences News
A list of 10 recommended road trips in Washington state includes the UW Planetarium. Andy Tzanidakis, a doctoral student in astronomy at the UW and student director of the planetarium, is quoted. Coach Jedd Fisch also is quoted about open-to-the-public football practices beginning April 2.Featured
on The Seattle Times
Aliens might time their signals with a burst of supernova light. James Davenport, research assistant professor of astronomy at the UW, is mentioned.Featured on Space
Starting in 2025, the Vera C. Rubin observatory will increase the number of known objects circling the sun by roughly tenfold, spotting new comets, exotic asteroids from other stars, and perhaps even the elusive Planet Nine. The UW's Mario Jurić, professor of astronomy, and Pedro Bernardinelli, postdoctoral fellow in astronomy, are quoted.Featured on … Read more
A proposal to build a far-flung set of radio antennas to measure the cosmos is one of 13 far-out concepts to receive seed funding from the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program, also known as NIAC. Matthew McQuinn, associate professor of astronomy at the UW, is quoted.Featured on GeekWire
Congratulations to Lupita Tovar for winning a Presentation Award at the National Diversity in STEM Conference, which was recently held by the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics & Native Americans in Science in Portland, Oregon. Tovar's presentation was on "The Impacts of Stellar Magnetic Activity on Exoplanet Environments". SACNAS Blog Post