The research of Elon University Department of Physics students and faculty was presented at the 227th American Astronomical Society meeting in Kissimmee, Florida, January 4-8.
The meeting is often called the “Super Bowl of Astronomy.” Conference organizers report more than 2,300 astronomers, educators, industry representatives and journalists attended.
Tony Crider, associate professor of physics, encouraged fellow educators to infuse visual literacy in their astronomy classes in his talk entitled “Astronomy, Visual Literacy, and Liberal Arts Education.”
Honors Fellow Maria Temming ’16, a double-major in physics and English, described her research with Crider in a talk entitled, “The Order of the Dolphin: Origins of SETI.” Temming was awarded the History of Astronomy Division Student Travel Award for the conference.
Physics major Ben Kaiser ’16, also an Honors Fellow, presented a poster on his project with Crider and Assistant Professor of Physics Chris Richardson, “The Nearby Analogues of Pure Starburst Galaxies.”
Honors Fellow Helen Meskhidze ’16, a double-major in physics and philosophy, gave a talk on her Lumen Scholar research with Professor Richardson entitled, “Developing an Atlas of Starburst Galaxy Emission Lines.”
Christopher Greene ’17 also attended the meeting. According to Greene, the AAS meeting served as a “good learning experience about what it would be like to present in the field.”