Department of Astronomy at UMass Amherst

M87’s Black Hole
UMass Amherst researchers are part of team that captured the first-ever image of a black hole
Department News
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How Do Galaxies Evolve? A UMass Amherst Undergrad May Have Provided the Missing Link
A University of Massachusetts Amherst undergraduate student has contributed significant work regarding the growth of stars and black holes, providing key insight into how they are linked. This new information will allow the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to more efficiently untangle how, exactly, galaxies work. Please see the link for more information. -
Prof. Schloerb awarded the 2022 Distinguished Faculty Lecture and Chancellor Medal
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Congratulations Class of 2022!
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UMass Amherst Astronomers Help to Reveal the Black Hole at the Heart of the Milky Way
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Meredith Stone wins the Mary Dailey Irvine Thesis Prize
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Two Astronomy students, Emily Martsen and Caleigh Ryan, receive the Astronomy Award for Academic Excellence.
Kate Whitaker and Team Investigate Oldest Galaxies
Whitaker’s team devised an innovative pairing of telescopes to better understand why some of the oldest, most massive galaxies go quiescent early in their formation. The team used the Hubble Space Telescope, which sees ultraviolet to near-infrared light, including the light we can see with our own eyes, to detect these distant galaxies, which are so far away that we’re only just now seeing the light they emitted 10 billion to 12 billion years ago, when the universe was in its infancy. In effect, Whitaker’s team is looking into the deep past.

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