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From the Front Desk of the Chair - Fall 2024 Newsletter

carina

This landscape of “mountains” and “valleys” speckled with glittering stars is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region called NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by NASA’s new James Webb Space Telescope, this image r

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI

star death

The dimmer star at the center of this scene has been sending out rings of gas and dust for thousands of years in all directions, and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has revealed for the first time that this star is cloaked in dust.

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI

webb

We're counting down to the release of the Webb Telescope’s first full-color images!

Image Credit: NASA/STScI

APS staffl/faculty

APS staff/faculty at the APS retreat in August 2023 at the Mountain Research Station

quintet

This enormous mosaic is Webb’s largest image to date, covering about one-fifth of the Moon’s diameter. It contains over 150 million pixels and is constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files.

Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI

Fall 2025 applications are now open. Applications for fall 2025 are due December 1, 2024. 

Check out our Prospective Students page for more information about applying to the APS Ph.D. program!

The Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences is one of the few programs that combines both astrophysics and planetary science, providing a unified view of space sciences; the solar system and comparative planetology; stellar and galactic astronomy; and cosmology. Students are given hands-on experience with telescopes, optics, instrumentation, and computer image processing and modeling. 

The Interdisciplinary Emphasis lends itself to a career in education, science journalism, science policy, information technology, science management, or technical work where a graduate degree is not required.


The Physics Emphasis is intended for students who wish to do research and continue on to graduate work in astronomy or planetary sciences. This emphasis also lends itself well to a career in technical work related to the field.


Our Ph.D. program allows graduate students to practice teaching, assist in cutting-edge research, and begin to take part in the larger professional astrophysics community.

  • The APS department recognizes our scientific and educational missions are strengthened by contributions from diverse perspectives. We aim to promote a fair, inclusive, and supportive environment for all.  As a member organization of the American Astronomical Society, our department adheres to their and encourages all our faculty, students, and staff to do the same.
    If you feel we have failed in this goal, or if there are any issues or areas of concern that the APS Executive Committee should be aware of, please use the .

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