Our Mission
The UW-Madison Astronomy Department’s mission is to conduct cutting edge research and to offer students and postdocs the highest quality of education. We conduct research in diverse areas of astronomy, from the physics of stars to cosmology, in observation and theory, and through the construction of cutting edge instruments for our complement of telescopes. We pride ourselves in an inclusive, diverse, and friendly scientific environment.
The department consists of 150 members, with currently 20 faculty members, 6 scientists, 6 postdoctoral fellows, and 30 graduate students. We offer an undergraduate major in Astronomy and Physics and graduate studies towards a Ph.D. in astrophysics. Regular seminars, group meetings and lunches, and many intra- and inter-department collaborations enrich the exchange of ideas that is vital to developing new ideas and to perfect scientific inquiry.
From a traditional strength in observational astronomy and space- and ground-based instrumentation, and a long history of first rate research in the study of astrophysical gases and the interstellar medium, the department is pursuing traditional as well as new avenues, with a recent emphasis on the observational and theoretical study of structure formation and the physics of stars.
This website, implemented in 2011, aims to convey some of the exciting science and the engrossing learning environment you can find at the UW-Madison Astronomy Department.
Upcoming Events in Astronomy
-
Mar 19
-
Mar 23
-
Mar 24
-
Mar 26
News & Announcements
Vozza Professor of Chemistry and Astronomy, Susanna Widicus Weaver, was awarded a Vilas Mid-Career Investigator Award by the Provost’s Office.
Former UW-Madison undergraduate Adam Distler has been named a 2026 Hertz Fellowship finalist. See the complete list here.
Ke ‘Coco’ Zhang’s research group has been featured in Wisconsin News here for producing the most accurate measurement of the gases swirling around young stars and their changing mass over time.
Congratulations to Adam Distler, Jenna Karcheski, Tayt Armitage, Erin Motherway, and Talia O’Shea for being awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program, as well as those in the department who received honorable mentions: Max Kroft and Eli Sofovich.
Check the Sterling Hall bulletin boards for more events and announcements.
Please note our bulletin board policy: These bulletin boards are for exclusive use of Department of Astronomy to promote Department of Astronomy events. Any materials posted here not posted by Department of Astronomy administration will be removed and discarded.
Washburn Observatory
Washburn Observatory, now home to the UW honors program and still in use for public observing and undergraduate instruction.
Gov. Washburn
Gov. Cadwallader C. Washburn was the founder of Washburn Observatory.
James Watson
First Director of Washburn Observatory.
Elizabeth Schofield
Assistant and “computer” at the Washburn Observatory, 1882-1883.
Emma Gattiker
Student and computer (part of the Washburn staff responsible for data reduction).
Alice Lamb
Wisconsin Astronomer (ca. 1885).
WI Solar Observatory
The Wisconsin Solar Observatory in front of Washburn Observatory.
Washburn Observatory
Washburn in the 1920s.
Washburn Aerial Photo
Washburn 15 Inch Refracto
The 15 inch refractor at Washburn Observatory still in operation during open houses and undergraduate.
Edward Holden
Edward Holden with 4.8 inch Respold meridian circle.
Cyrus Woodman
Founder of the Woodman Astronomical Library.
1st Woodman Library
The original Woodman Astronomical Library was located in Washburn Observatory.
Albert S. Flint
Staff Astronomer at Washburn Observatory.
George Comstock
George Comstock was the third director of the Washburn Observatory.
Clock Setting
Joel Stebbins
Joel Stebbins (fourth director of Washburn Observatory) at the eye piece of the 15 inch refractor.
Photometer
Gen. Astro. Instruction
The Washburn refractor has long been used in graduate and undergraduate instruction.
Pine Bluff Mirror Blank
Albert Whitford and C. Morse Huffer inspect the mirror blank for the 36 inch Pine Bluff Telescope (1952).
Rocket Instrument
Rocket Payload
Sterling Hall Bombing
Sterling Hall, which at that point housed the Astronomy on its top floors, was bombed in 1970.