News
June 1, 2017
NASA Renames Solar Probe Mission in Honor of MSU Physics Alumnus Eugene Parker
In a ceremony at the University of Chicago on 31 May 2017, NASA announced that the former Solar Probe Plus mission, which will launch in 2018, was being renamed the Parker Solar Probe in honor of MSU alumnus solar astrophysicist Eugene Parker. This is the first time a spacecraft has been named for a living person.
The Muon g−2 Experiment at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL, or "Fermilab") and its members within the MSU Department of Physics and Astronomy, Prof. Martin Berz, Research Prof. Kyoko Makino, and their team of graduate students, are featured in the June 8th MSU Today article "Muon Magnet's Moment Has Arrived".
Hannah Professor of Physics Witold "Witek" Nazarewiczhas been awarded the G. N. Flerov Prize by the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) in Dubna, Russia, for his theoretical studies of the atomic and nuclear properties of the heaviest elements.
In an investiture ceremony held in room 1415 BPS Building on 20 April 2017, Physics & Astronomy Professor Joey Huston was honored as an MSU Foundation Professor.
On Saturday, 15 April 2017, the MSU Department of Physics & Astronomy will be a sponsor of Physics and Astronomy Day at Impression 5 Science Center in Lansing from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. Students and faculty will lead hands-on interactive activities for children of all ages.
MSU’s nuclear physics graduate program, part of the College of Natural Science’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, is among seven MSU graduate programs that rank No. 1 nationally in the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings.
February 28, 2017
Laura Chomiuk named 2017 Cottrell Scholar
MSU Physics & Astronomy Assistant Professor Laura Chomiuk has been named as one of two dozen 2017 Cottrell Scholars by the Research Corporation for Science Advancement.
An article published on 18 February 2017 in MSU Today features MSU Physics & Astronomy Assistant Professor Chris Wrede, giving details of some of his research into the generation of nuclear isotopes in stellar explosions, which was the topic of a presentation he made recently at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He explains how experiments done at the NSCL provide real evidence linking astronomical observations with theoretical and computational models of how heavy nuclei are formed and distributed in nature.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) has announced the results of its 2017 elections, and MSU Physics & Astronomy Professor Megan Donahue has been elected as the new AAS President. She will take office this summer.
Starting in February 2017 and continuing until March 2018, MSU Physics & Astronomy University Distinguished Professor Michael Thoennessen will serve as the Chair of the Executive Committee of the American Physical Society's Division of Nuclear Physics.