News
WKAR Radio's Current State program aired an interview on April 21st with MSU Physics & Astronomy Professor Joey Huston and Associate Professor Wade Fisher about the recent re-start of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), which had been down for two years for maintenance and upgrades. MSU's High Energy Physics group has an extensive presence in the LHC research program. The interview may be heard online via this article on the WKAR web site.
Physics & Astronomy Associate Professor Tyce DeYoung discusses his research into high energy neutrino physics in an April 1st, 2015 "Faculty Voice" piece at MSU Today. He is part of the research team for the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole and tells of its role in trying to unravel mysteries related to the elusive elementary particle.
In the 2014 US News and World Report's rankings of graduate school programs published Monday, March 9, 2015, Michigan State University's Nuclear Physics graduate program continues its placement at the top of the list, a position it has held since 2010:
http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-science-schools/nuclear-science-rankings
The Physics Teacher Education Coalition ("PhysTEC", a partnership between the American Physical Society and the American Association of Physics Teachers) has recognized Michigan State University as a member of its "5+ Club" - institutions of higher education which have granted five or more physics education degrees in a single year over the past few academic years. Since the typical number for most universities is zero, MSU's 7 graduates during the 2012-2013 academic year is notable.
Brian O'Shea, who specializes in computational astrophysics and is jointly appointed to the faculties of Lyman Briggs College and the Department of Physics and Astronomy, is one of four recipients of MSU's 2015 Teacher-Scholar Award.
The Department of Physics and Astronomy has welcomed three new faculty members in the 2015-2016 academic year.
On October 15th, Assistant Professor Jay Strader of the MSU Department of Physics and Astronomy was named one of this year's 18 recipients nationwide of a Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering. Accompanying this prestigious honor is an individual research grant of $875,000 distributed over the next five years.
In lieu of the weekly Physics-Astronomy Colloquium, members of the department (and others) are invited to the Scientific Symposium Honoring Former NSCL Director Konrad Gelbke at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts' Pasant Theatre from 2:00 to 5:30 pm on Thursday, 08 October 2015. P-A attendees of the symposium do not have to register.
The MSU Department of Physics and Astronomy will host noted astronomer Andrea Ghez of UCLA, Monday, September 28th and Tuesday, September 29th.
Members of the Michigan State University Department of Physics and Astronomy are major players in the new High-Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) Gamma-Ray Observatory in Puebla, Mexico, which will observe very high-energy gamma rays and cosmic rays coming from extreme sources in the universe, such as black holes, dark matter and exploding stars. HAWC is a collaborative effort between the United States and Mexico. The site was chosen for its high altitude (13,500 feet) and proximity to the LMT Alfonso Serano, a large radio telescope.