News
School of Physics and Astronomy

  • October 24, 2018

    Side profile of a small brown elephant.

    Research on elephants could translate to robotics

    Understanding how elephants use their trunks to pick up small objects could lead to robots designed with flexible hands or grippers, according to a new study that includes research by RIT scientist Scott Franklin.
  • October 3, 2018

    Computer simulation of neutron stars merging with other neutron stars or black holes.

    RIT leads project to simulate neutron star mergers

    RIT is advancing computer simulations to predict, for the first time, the complete cycle of neutron stars merging with other neutron stars or black holes. The project is supported by $1.5 million from NASA.
  • September 7, 2018

    Male student with glasses dressed in suit.

    Student leaders work to grow graduate culture

    Yashar Seyed Vahedein, an engineering Ph.D. candidate, established the Doctoral Student Association (DSA) as a social and professional connection for RIT’s doctoral and prospective Ph.D. students.
  • August 27, 2018

    The Inclusive Excellence researchers pose for a photo together in front of their research posters.

    Inclusive Excellence cultivates diversity

    The first Inclusive Excellence research fellowship was held this summer and paired seven undergraduate students in the College of Science with research mentors. The initiative is working to create a deeper understanding of diversity in the College of Science and at RIT.
  • February 14, 2018

    Magnetic field lines diagram.

    New study advances multimessenger astrophysics

    A new simulation of supermassive black holes, the behemoths at the centers of galaxies, uses a realistic scenario to predict the light signals emitted in the surrounding gas before the masses collide, said RIT researchers in a new paper published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.
  • October 30, 2017

    outer gas disk of spiral galaxies in space.

    Hunting for massive black-hole mergers

    The outskirts of spiral galaxies like our own could be crowded with colliding black holes of massive proportions and a prime location for scientists hunting the sources of gravitational waves, according to RIT researchers.

  • October 16, 2017

    Computer Graphic of "First Cosmic Event Observed in Gravitational Waves and Light"

    RIT researchers part of breakthrough discovery

    RIT researchers played a significant role in an international announcement today that has changed the future of astrophysics. The breakthrough discovery of colliding neutron stars marks the first time both gravitational waves and light have been detected from the same cosmic collision.
  • August 16, 2017

    Student, Chi Nguyen, standing next to infrared machine

    Astrophysics Ph.D. student wins NASA fellowship

    RIT graduate student Chi Nguyen was selected for a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship in Astrophysics Research, one of eight fellowship recipients selected from 141 applicants to the Astrophysics Science Research Program.
  • August 9, 2017

    Close up picture of optical trap

    RIT physicist studies quantum sensing solutions

    Research conducted by Mishkat Bhattacharya, a theoretical physicist, is advancing a new kind of sensing technology that captures data with better precision than currently possible and promises cheaper, smaller and lighter sensor designs.