University of Maryland Graduate Catalog Fall 2009

Astronomy (ASTR)

Faculty

Chair
Vogel, Stuart N.,

Distinguished University Professor
A'Hearn, Michael F.,

Professor
A'Hearn, Michael F., Hamilton, Douglas P., Harrington, J. Patrick, Harris, Andrew I., Mundy, Lee G., Ostriker, Eve C., Papadopoulos, Konstantinos Dennis, Veilleux, Sylvain, Vogel, Stuart N.,

Professor Emeritus
Bell, Roger A., Earl, James A., Erickson, William C., Kundu, Mukul R., Leventhal, Marvin, Rose, William K., Wentzel, Donat G.,

Associate Professor
McGaugh, Stacy S., Miller, M. Coleman, Reynolds, Christopher, Richardson, Derek C.,

Assistant Professor
Bolatto, Alberto D., Ricotti, Massimo,

Abstract

The Department of Astronomy offers programs of study leading to the Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. The M.S. program includes both thesis and non-thesis options.

A full schedule of courses covering most fields of astronomy is offered. Some areas in which the faculty focus their research efforts are comets, solar radio astronomy, interplanetary dust, mm wavelength astronomy, the interstellar medium, active galaxies, plasma astrophysics, high energy astrophysics, theoretical and computational astrophysics, planetary dynamics, and cosmology.

Admissions Information

No formal undergraduate course work in astronomy is required. However, an entering student should have a basic, working knowledge of the subject, which could be obtained from any one of many elementary textbooks. A more advanced knowledge will of course enable a student to progress more rapidly during the first year of graduate work.

A satisfactory score on the GRE Advanced Test in Physics is normally required before an applicant's admission to the Graduate School will be considered, but the Graduate Entrance Committee may waive this requirement in special cases. Instead, the committee may set other conditions as a requirement for admission to be fulfilled either before admission or during the first year at Maryland.

Application Deadlines

	Fall	Spring
Domestic Applicants: U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents
Domestic Applicant Deadlines	Both Domestic and International Applications must be received by January 15 .	This program does not accept applications for this semester.
International Applicants: Applicants from Outside the U.S. or U.S. Citizens / Permanent Residents with Non-U.S. Credentials IMPORTANT:   International Applicants and U.S. Applicants with Non-U.S. Credentials must follow the domestic deadlines above if they are earlier than the deadlines listed below.
Applicants seeking admission under F (Student) or J (Exchange Visitor) visas	February 1 If Domestic Deadline is after Feb. 1	June 1 If Domestic Deadline is after Jun. 1
Applicants seeking admission under A, E, G, H, I, and L visas and immigrants	May 1 If Domestic Deadline is after May 1	October 1 If Domestic Deadline is after Jun. 1
U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents with foreign credentials	May 15 If Domestic Deadline is after May 15	October 31 If Domestic Deadline is after Oct.31

Application Requirements

1. GRE General and GRE Physics Subject Test is required
2. 3 Letters of Recommendation

Degree Requirements

Master of Science (M.S.)
Candidates for the Master of Science Degree with thesis are required to complete 24 credits exclusive of registration for master's research (6 credits). At least 12 credits must be in the major area and at least 12 must be at the 600 level (not necessarily the same 12). In addition, at least six credits must be in a related field (supporting area).

The non-thesis option of the M.S. degree requires six credits in the major at the 600 level in addition to the general requirements described above. That is, a total of 30 credits are required of which 18 must be in the major and at least 18 at the 600 level. The student must also pass a written examination, usually consisting of the written part of the Ph.D. qualifying examination with appropriately chosen passing requirements.

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Course requirements for the PhD in Astronomy currently consists of five core courses ASTR 601,606,610,620 and 670. A qualifying exam based on these courses is given in the summer after the second year. A research project is required of all students in the second year of graduate study. Admission to the PhD program is based on course work, the research project and the qualifier.

Facilities and Special Resources

In collaboration with three other excellent astronomy departments, the University of Maryland operates CARMA (Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy), the most powerful millimeter-wave telescope in the world. Located in the Inyo Mountains of eastern California, CARMA is an array of 15 linked radio dishes. Astronomers use CARMA primarily to study radio waves emitted by molecules and dust in the coldest parts of the universe. CARMA saw "first light" in late 2005, and it will be used by students and other researchers for a wide range of projects. It is ideally suited for the study of planetary and star formation, the birth and evolution of galaxies, and the feeding of supermassive black holes that power active galactic nuclei. Maryland astronomers are guaranteed 10% of the total observing time on CARMA.

The Astronomy Department has a partnership with the NOAO Kitt Peak Observatory to build infrared and optical instruments for the Mayall 4-m and the WIYN 3.6-m telescope. In addition to developing new instrumentation, this partnership gives us guaranteed access to the telescopes. Much of this time is used to support graduate student dissertation work.

There is an extensive network of workstations available for use in the department. The network provides seamless access to software and hardware on a variety of UNIX and LINUX platforms. The computational astrophysics group maintains and upgrades a Beowulf cluster for computation-intensive science projects.

The department has strong interaction with national astronomy observatories, where many students and faculty maintain observing programs, and also with neighboring scientific institutes. A major program of cooperative research has been established with the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, where a number of graduate students conduct research. There are also contacts with the Naval Observatory, the Naval Research Lab and other government agencies.

Financial Assistance

The Department of Astronomy offers both teaching and research assistantships. Essentially all full-time graduate students receive full financial support. Most students receive assistantships to cover the summer period. These are either with faculty in the department or with staff members at the NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center. Some summer teaching assistantships are also available. The deadline for financial support applications is January 15th for assistantships and fellowships.

Contact Information

For more specific information, contact:

Graduate Entrance Committee
Dept of Astronomy Univ of Maryland, College Park
MD  20742-2421
Telephone: (301)405-3001
Fax: (301)314-9067
astr-grad@deans.umd.edu

http://www.astro.umd.edu/

current URL: http://www.gradschool.umd.edu/catalog/programs/printable.cfm?CODE=17

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