Mark Vogelsberger wins 2020 Buchalter Cosmology Prize for simulating a “fuzzy” universe
Associate professor of physics shares the honor with colleague Phillip Mocz for their novel dark matter research.
Jan. 14, 2021 • ~3 min
physics astrophysics astronomy dark-matter research awards-honors-and-fellowships school-of-science faculty computer-modeling kavli-institute space-astronomy-and-planetary-science galaxy-formation
Storm in a cosmic teacup: A new paradigm for understanding plasma turbulence
PhD candidate Lucio Milanese uncovers new fundamental mechanism in turbulence.
Jan. 12, 2021 • ~9 min
astrophysics sustainability research plasma school-of-engineering school-of-science mit-energy-initiative nuclear-science-and-engineering plasma-science-and-fusion-center undergraduate-research-opportunities-program-urop fusion
A technique to sift out the universe’s first gravitational waves
Identifying primordial ripples would be key to understanding the conditions of the early universe.
Dec. 9, 2020 • ~8 min
physics astrophysics research black-holes school-of-science kavli-institute space-astronomy-and-planetary-science ligo
Pulling the secrets of dark matter out of a hat
Grad student Chiara Salemi and Professor Lindley Winslow use the ABRACADABRA instrument to reveal insights into dark matter.
Dec. 2, 2020 • ~9 min
physics astrophysics dark-matter profile research students graduate-postdoctoral school-of-science national-science-foundation-nsf laboratory-for-nuclear-science space-astronomy-and-planetary-science department-of-energy-doe center-for-theoretical-physics
3 Questions: Hsin-Yu Chen on treading lightly when dating the universe
MIT postdoc finds the angle at which we view neutron star collisions could significantly impact age measurements.
Nov. 13, 2020 • ~6 min
physics astrophysics astronomy research black-holes school-of-science 3-questions kavli-institute ligo neutron-stars
Designing new mirror materials for better gravitational-wave detection
Nicholas Demos, a first-generation college graduate and MathWorks Fellow in MIT’s Kavli Institute, is improving our ability to listen to the cosmos.
Oct. 28, 2020 • ~7 min
physics astrophysics astronomy profile research stars black-holes students awards-honors-and-fellowships graduate-postdoctoral school-of-science kavli-institute space-astronomy-and-planetary-science ligo
The wobbling shadow of the M87* black hole
Analysis of Event Horizon Telescope observations from 2009 to 2017 reveals turbulent evolution of the M87* black hole image.
Sept. 23, 2020 • ~5 min
astrophysics astronomy research black-holes space-astronomy-and-planetary-science haystack-observatory
Astronomers may have found a signature of life on Venus
Evidence indicates phosphine, a gas associated with living organisms, is present in the habitable region of Venus’ atmosphere.
Sept. 14, 2020 • ~10 min
physics astrophysics astronomy research school-of-science kavli-institute planetary-science space-astronomy-and-planetary-science eaps
An unexpected origin story for a lopsided black hole merger
Researchers suggest a novel process to explain the collision of a large black hole and a much smaller one.
Sept. 2, 2020 • ~8 min
physics astrophysics astronomy research black-holes school-of-science national-science-foundation-nsf kavli-institute space-astronomy-and-planetary-science ligo
A “bang” in LIGO and Virgo detectors signals most massive gravitational-wave source yet
A binary black hole merger likely produced gravitational waves equal to the energy of eight suns.
Sept. 2, 2020 • ~10 min
physics astrophysics astronomy data research black-holes school-of-science national-science-foundation-nsf kavli-institute space-astronomy-and-planetary-science ligo
/
13