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Skip to main content Utility Menu News Events Alumni Faculty and Staff Directory About Equity and Inclusion Giving Job Opportunities Graduate Apply Frequently Asked Questions Positions of Former PhD Students Career Profiles Courses Contact Us Undergraduate Application Process Astronomy and Astrophysics Major Astronomy and Astrophysics Minor Planetary Science and Astronomy Major Planetary Science and Astronomy Minor Astrobiology Minor Courses Goals Advising Telescope Status Tutors Student Resources Career Opportunities Contact Us People News Events Research Public Outreach AstroFest Field Trip Request Friedman Lectures Planetarium Road Scholar Stargazing Teacher Workshops Dept. of Department of Astronomy About Equity and Inclusion Giving Job Opportunities Graduate Apply Frequently Asked Questions Positions of Former PhD Students Career Profiles Courses Contact Us Undergraduate Application Process Astronomy and Astrophysics Major Astronomy and Astrophysics Minor Planetary Science and Astronomy Major Planetary Science and Astronomy Minor Astrobiology Minor Courses Goals Advising Telescope Status Tutors Student Resources Career Opportunities Contact Us People News Events Research Public Outreach AstroFest Field Trip Request Friedman Lectures Planetarium Road Scholar Stargazing Teacher Workshops The Eberly College of Science Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics We promote science education, training, and research to expand our knowledge of the universe through undergraduate and graduate education, research, and public outreach. Astronomy and Astrophysics undergraduate program Develop a comprehensive view of the universe and its physical laws and learn how to explain the universe to the world. Start now Take a leading role in one of the most productive astronomy and astrophysics research programs in the country. Start now Astronomy and Astrophysics graduate program Exploring the Universe at Penn State More than 60 faculty researchers and educators and a dozen faculty members from other departments and colleges at Penn State pursue greater understanding of our universe. Areas of investigation include exoplanets, observational and theoretical cosmology, gravitational radiation, space and ground-based instrumentation, supermassive black holes, brown dwarfs, astrostatistics, and high energy astrophysics. Covering the most active areas: Penn State is one of the world's leading institutions in exoplanet research. Alexander Wolszscan, discoverer of the first exoplanets, is one of many faculty in this vibrant field. For decades Penn State has been at the cutting edge of new approaches to investigating the universe, designing and constructing innovative instrumentation for both space missions and ground-based telescopes. At the forefront of new astronomical instrumentation: Astronomy and Astrophysics Department Our faculty is one of the largest and most productive astronomy and astrophysics programs in the country engaging in front-line research programs and preparing the next generation of scientists for the future. Featured Faculty View Faculty Jane Charlton Professor Research Interests Galactic Evolution and Cosmology Interacting Galaxies Star Formation Quasars Quasar Absorption Lines Online Education in Astronomy View More Suvrath Mahadevan Professor Research Interests Exoplanets Astronomical Instrumentation Large Scale Surveys Astrophotonics Astrobiology Precision Measurements in Astrophysics View More Eric Ford Professor Research Interests Exoplanets Planet Formation Astrostatistics and Astroinformatics High-Performance Computing Data Science Life in the Universe View More Featured Story Read more Stellar winds, the source material for the universe, are clumpy Data recorded by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory of a neutron star as it passed through a dense patch of stellar wind emanating from its massive companion star provide valuable insight about the structure and composition of stellar winds and about the environment of the neutron star itself. Learn more How hot are atoms in the shock wave of an exploding star? A new method to measure the temperature of atoms during the explosive death of a star will help scientists understand the shock wave that occurs as a result of this supernova explosion. See more Searching the stars for other civilizations Since before the dawn of history, humans have looked up at the sky in wonder. With the invention of the optical telescope in the early 1600s, we began our quest to bridge the heavens and the Earth. Learn more Penn State set to lead on new exoplanet science priorities A report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine sets the stage for Penn State's Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds to expand its role in NASA's exoplanetary science initiatives "The best theory of gravity that we have today is general relativity, but it has limitations" Read more Abhay Ashtekar Astronomy and Astrophysics Spotlight Events and Lectures AstroFest July 8, 8:30 pm - July 11, 11:30 pm Davey Laboratory A four night festival of Astronomy held concurrently with the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts. View Details Events and Lectures Special Talk: The NANOGrav 11-Year Data Set: New Insights into Galaxy Growth and Evolution February 28, 11:00 am - February 28, 12:00 pm Davey Laboratory (538) CEHW Seminar: Characterizing exoplanet atmospheres with high-resolution ground-based spectroscopy March 2, 12:10 pm - March 2, 1:20 pm Davey Laboratory (538) Lunch Talk: Noah Tuchow March 3, 12:15 pm - March 3, 1:00 pm Davey Laboratory (538) Colloquium: TEST 2 March 4, 3:45 pm - March 4, 5:00 pm Davey Laboratory (538) See All Important Events Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics Penn State University 525 Davey Laboratory University Park, PA 16802 814.865.0418 Fax: 814.863.2842 Contact Information College Resources Finance Administrative Offices Advising Communications Facilities College Resources 2 Human Resources Information Technology Instruction and Curricula Intranet Research Administration Offices and Centers Office of Science Engagement Office of Diversity and Inclusion Office of Digital Learning Office for Innovation Office of Science Outreach Office for Undergraduate Students Center for Excellence in Science Education Development and Alumni Relations Student Programs Co-op Internship/Externship Study Abroad Undergraduate Research PennState-Eberly College of Science Footer Menu Sitemap College Org. 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