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Astro and Planets

December 17, 2019
Astrophysicist Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz gives TED talk at National Academy of Sciences
Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz, professor of astronomy and astrophysics, is among a select group of scientists who delivered TED talks at the National Academy of Sciences in November.
December 03, 2019
Composition of gas giant planets not determined by host star, study finds
Research led by astronomers at UC Santa Cruz and Carnegie Institution for Science has implications for understanding how planets form.
November 07, 2019
Lick Observatory continues popular program for Spanish-speaking community
‘La Noche de las Estrellas’ at Lick Observatory brings science to Spanish-speaking students and their families.
October 30, 2019
Simulations explain giant exoplanets with eccentric, close-in orbits
A giant-impacts phase in the evolution of planetary systems can explain the observations of close-in giant planets with eccentric orbits.
October 30, 2019
Powerful new supercomputer supports campus research in physical sciences
UCSC faculty are using the new system for research in astrophysics, climate science, materials science, chemistry, and other fields.
October 22, 2019
When exoplanets collide
Scientists thought they found clues pointing to a collision between two exoplanets ten years ago. Now they found more evidence of a catastrophic collision.
September 26, 2019
Galaxy found to float in a tranquil sea of halo gas
Analysis of radio pulses that passed through a galactic halo reveals a surprisingly quiescent halo with very low density and weak magnetic field.
July 22, 2019
Lick Observatory commemorates Apollo 11 experiment on 50th anniversary
Dedication of a plaque at Lick's Shane Telescope on August 1 honors the Lunar Laser Ranging Experiment that measured the distance to the moon 50 years ago.
July 17, 2019
Breakthrough Listen launches new optical search with VERITAS Telescope Array
SCIPP physicist David Williams will help lead effort using four 12-meter telescopes to search for nanosecond flashes of light from extraterrestrial civilizations.
June 27, 2019
Astronomers make history in a split second with localization of fast radio burst
In a world first, an international team of astronomers has determined the precise location of a powerful one-off burst of cosmic radio waves known as a fast radio burst.
June 04, 2019
Gifts accelerate research, from the galactic to the microscopic
Gifts from Ken and Gloria Levy support biomedical discovery that may help cancer patients as well as research on dark matter halos, some of the universe’s largest structures
May 24, 2019
Astronomer Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz appointed to endowed chair for diversity in astronomy
The May 22 investiture ceremony honored Ramirez-Ruiz as the inaugural holder of the Vera Rubin Presidential Chair for Diversity in Astronomy.
May 23, 2019
Astrophysicist Natalie Batalha will give annual Mandel Lecture on June 5
Free public talk will focus on Batalha's research on exoplanets and the search for life on other planets.
May 08, 2019
Ancient galaxies reveal new clues about a cosmic transformation
The unexpected brightness of early galaxies may explain "reionization," a transformative epoch in the history of the universe.
May 02, 2019
Astronomers assemble wide view of the evolving universe
A team led by UC Santa Cruz astronomer Garth Illingworth used 16 years of Hubble Space Telescope observations to create a new portrait of the distant universe.
April 29, 2019
Sandra Faber receives American Philosophical Society's Magellanic Premium Medal
Faber was honored for her transformative research on galaxy formation and evolution.
April 19, 2019
UC Santa Cruz hosts summer program on machine learning in astronomy
The Kavli Summer Program in Astrophysics brings together an international group of scientists and students for a six-week program of learning and research.
April 17, 2019
Astronomer Natalie Batalha elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The academy's class of 2019 also includes UCSC alumnus Joe Palca, as well as Michelle Obama and Jonathan Franzen.
April 08, 2019
Iron volcanoes may have erupted on metal asteroids
NASA's upcoming mission to the asteroid Psyche could look for signs of past eruptions, and evidence of 'ferrovolcanism' may also turn up in iron meteorites.
March 27, 2019
Postdoctoral fellowship supports planetary science research
The 51 Pegasi b Fellowship will fund Xinting Yu's research at UC Santa Cruz on formation of clouds and hazes on exoplanets.
March 25, 2019
Summer programs draw visitors to Lick Observatory for music and stargazing
Tickets go on sale in April for the observatory's popular summer evening programs.
February 12, 2019
Astrophysicist Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz wins AAS/HEAD Mid-Career Prize
The 2019 HEAD Mid-Career Prize recognizes Ramirez-Ruiz "for his key contributions to our physical understanding of transient phenomena involving compact objects."
January 29, 2019
MaNGA data release includes detailed maps of thousands of nearby galaxies
Major data release from Sloan Digital Sky Survey includes galaxy maps, new data access and visualization tools, and a huge 'stellar library'.
January 18, 2019
Waves in Saturn's rings give precise measurement of planet's rotation rate
Saturn's ring system acts as a sensitive seismograph, enabling scientists to measure the giant planet's vibrations and determine its rotation rate.
January 18, 2019
Planetary scientist Francis Nimmo honored by Royal Astronomical Society
The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) has awarded the 2019 Harold Jeffreys Lectureship to Francis Nimmo, professor of Earth and planetary science at UC Santa Cruz.
January 17, 2019
In Memoriam: Arnold Klemola (1931–2019)
Arnold Klemola, a long-time staff researcher at UC Observatories, passed away on January 5, 2019. He was 87.
January 16, 2019
Scientists to inaugurate a new type of gamma ray telescope at Whipple Observatory
The prototype Schwarzschild-Couder Telescope (pSCT) is designed as a pathfinder telescope for the Cherenkov Telescope Array.