Astrophysics Research Interests

Faculty

  • Richard Black Professor Scott Tremaine: Astrophysical dynamics; formation and evolution of planetary systems; galactic structure and evolution; supermassive black holes in galaxies
  • Professor Matias Zaldarriaga: Cosmology -- early universe cosmology, cosmological perturbation theory, cosmic microwave background, large-scale structure, dark matter and dark energy

Visiting Professor

  • Maureen and John Hendricks Visiting Professor Rashid Sunyaev: Theoretical astrophysics, high energy astrophysics and cosmology: including CMB, clusters of galaxies, theory of accretion onto black holes and neutron stars, interaction of matter and radiation under astrophysical conditions, x-ray astronomy

Current Members

  • Yacine Ali-Haïmoud: Cosmology: primordial hydrogen recombination; interstellar medium and dust; modified gravity
  • Simeon Bird: Cosmology: N-body simulations, Lyman-alpha forest, inflation, massive neutrinos
  • Kfir Blum: Particle astrophysics and cosmology; electroweak symmetry breaking, baryon asymmetry, dark matter direct and indirect detection; cosmic rays
  • Jo Bovy: Galactic dynamics; galactic structure and evolution; data modeling and analysis techniques; dark matter; quasars
  • Subo Dong: Gravitational microlensing, extrasolar planet search and statistics, dynamics, data modeling and analysis techniques, time-domain astronomy
  • Cora Dvorkin: Cosmology: inflation and its imprints in the Cosmic Microwave Background, cosmological perturbation theory, dark matter, dark energy
  • Rodrigo Fernandez: Stellar hydrodynamics and radiation -- supernovae, neutron stars
  • Raphael Flauger: Cosmology: field and string theory models of the early universe, primordial non-Gaussianity, cosmic microwave background; High energy physics
  • Daniel Grin:  Axions, cosmological recombination, dark matter halo profiles, reheating, gravitational lensing, cosmological initial conditions, modifications to general relativity
  • Tobias Heinemann: Astrophysical fluid dynamics; wave dynamics and dynamo processes in accretion discs
  • Boaz Katz: High energy astrophysics, cosmic rays, collisionless shocks, radiation mediated shocks, supernova shock breakouts
  • Woong-Tae Kim: Astrophysical gas dynamics and magnetohydrodynamics: galactic star formation, dynamics of spiral and barred galaxies, dynamical friction, galaxy clusters
  • Brian Lacki: Cosmic rays, high energy astrophysics, very low frequency radio astronomy, cosmic background radiation
  • Marilena Loverde: Cosmology: statistics, evolution and observation of large-scale structure; tests of inflation, dark energy and dark matter; cosmic microwave background, Lyman-alpha forest, galaxy surveys
  • Hanno Rein: Extrasolar planets, planet migration, Saturn's rings, dynamics, computational astrophysics and high performance computing
  • Aristotle Socrates: Astrophysical black holes, accretion, magnetohydrodynamics, radiation mechanisms, extrasolar planets, galaxy evolution
  • David Spiegel: Radiative and hydrodynamical processes in atmospheres and interiors of extrasolar planets, astrobiology, stellar astrophysics
  • Amit Yadav: Cosmology -- early universe, primordial non-Gaussianity, weak gravitational lensing, CMB polarization