Joel Kastner
Professor
Joel Kastner
Professor
Education
BS, University of Maryland; MS, Ph.D., University of California
Bio
- Joel Kastner (Ph.D. in Astronomy, UCLA 1990) is a Professor on the faculty of Rochester Institute of Technology’s Center for Imaging Science and School of Physics & Astronomy. He was the founding Director of RIT's Laboratory for Multiwavelength Astrophysics.
- Prior to his two decades at RIT, Prof. Kastner spent almost a decade at MIT, first as Bantrell Postdoc at MIT Haystack Radio Observatory and then as staff scientist with MIT's side of the Chandra (then AXAF) X-ray Science Center.
- Prof. Kastner's research interests lie in the early and late stages of stellar evolution -- i.e., the formative stages of stars and planetary systems, and their death throes. He has conducted observations of forming and dying stars and stellar systems across a broad swath of the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio to X-rays.
- Prof. Kastner was among the original group of (roughly 230) astronomers named as "Legacy" Fellows of the American Astronomical Society in 2020, and presently serves as Chair of the AAS Committee on Employment.
- A complete list of Prof. Kastner's publications can be found at this link to NASA's Astrophysics Data System.
Currently Teaching
In the News
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April 24, 2024
![a colorful 3 D image of the southern ring nebula appears in a black sky.]()
See the Southern Ring Nebula in 3D
Universe Today highlights the research led by Joel Kastner, professor in the Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science, on the Southern Ring Nebula's dual-ring formation and the possible role of a second star.
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April 2, 2024
![The Southern Ring Nebula, or NGC 3132, is shown through the lens of the James Webb Space Telescope.]()
Scientists release new insight about Southern Ring Nebula
Planetary nebulae have been studied for centuries, but astronomers are getting new looks and a better understanding of the structures and compositions of these gaseous remnants of dying stars thanks to the ability to study objects at multiple wavelengths and dimensions.
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July 25, 2023
![yellow and purple dust particle forming around a yellow orb in space.]()
RIT professor co-authors paper on new planetary formation findings
Joel Kastner, a professor in the Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science and School of Physics and Astronomy, and a team of researchers with the European Southern Observatory have discovered new evidence of how planets as massive as Jupiter can form.
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August 13, 2024
Kastner contributes to NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory 25th anniversary
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May 25, 2023
Kartaltepe and Kastner give plenary talks
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November 18, 2022
Team co-authors astrophysics book chapter
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July 12, 2022
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope made with help from Rochester