Deegan Bator was named the 2026 Outstanding Senior for the Department of Physics & Astronomy. Awarded annually, the Outstanding Senior goes to an undergraduate student who excels in academics, research, and collegiality. In the autumn of 2025 he earned his Reactor Operator License and completed his senior dissertation in the area of reactor operations. His […]
Abhilipsa Barik, a PhD student working for Matt McCluskey, earned 2nd place in the Physical and Social Sciences category at the GPSA Research Expo. The Expo was held at WSU Beasley Coliseum on March 26, 2026. Her research concerns photochromism, or light-induced darkening, of crystals that have important applications in lasers and other optical devices. Abhilipsa […]
The Department of Physics & Astronomy’s undergraduate poster show was held Thursday, December 4, 2025. The show is held annually to showcase research completed by graduating seniors. This year’s show was held in the Spark Academic Innovation Hub, where posters can be displayed on monitors. This format allows students to show posters with multiple pages […]
Jack Lambert was featured in the annual careers issue of Physics Today. Jack received his BS Physics, with a concentration in Astrophysics, in 2019. He completed his senior dissertation under Guy Worthey in the determination of stellar membership of the Pleiades. He then completed an MA in Teaching at Westminster University. Currently Jack teaches in […]
PNNL-WSU Distinguished Graduate Research Program (DGRP) DGRP is a prestigious collaboration between Washington State University (WSU) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), providing enhanced experience for the students. The DGRP is particularly interested in helping to recruit outstanding students to WSU graduate programs primarily in chemical conversions and catalysis; power systems engineering; nuclear science and […]
Physics alumnus Nathan Dawson (PhD 2010), now a Professor at Florida Polytechnic University, recently had his research reported by Science News. The discovery that peacock feathers can laze is a first in the animal kingdom. Read the full story here.
(reprinted from LinkedIn) Congratulations to Allison Mata of Boise, ID, for receiving the James A. Weir Fellowship in Research! A standout astrophysics major in the Honors College at Washington State University, Allison is conducting groundbreaking research focused on improving the detectability of supermassive black hole binaries (SMBHBs). By analyzing the light curves of quasars, she’s […]
Our undergraduate lab space is being renovated! Occupying the second and third floors of the Webster Building on the Pullman campus, the lab space serves undergraduates in service courses and the first-year seminar course for Physics majors. The renovation includes new CPUs and monitors for student use in collecting, analyzing, and displaying data. New big […]
Dr. Michael Allen gave a talk to the Spokane Astronomical Society on Friday 13 June 2025. The talk was entitled “ERIRA: education and research in radio astronomy”. Dr. Allen introduced the Green Bank Observatory and the telescopes located on site before speaking about its summer research program for undergraduates. The two research projects Allen spoke […]
Asterion Bork received the Outstanding Senior Award for the Department of Physics & Astronomy in a ceremony on Friday May 2, 2025. Aster was cited for her strong academic achievements, her undergraduate research in stellar astronomy and planetary science, and her dedication to Physics Club events like Pumpkin Drop and story time with faculty. Congratulations […]
