Professor Steven D. Kawaler, from Iowa State University will be visiting the University of Birmingham 17th October-17th December 2016, hosted by Professor William Chaplin, School of Physics and Astronomy.
Professor Kawaler is one of the world’s leading experts on the rotation of stars and the study of more advanced stages of stellar evolution. He is an editor of the leading international journal for refereed astrophysics papers, The Astrophysical Journal. He has also recently served as the President of Division V (Variable Stars) of the International Astronomical Union, and as an elected member of the Council of the American Astronomical Society, the main professional body for astronomers in the US.
A new generation of space telescopes, led by the NASA Kepler Mission, has revolutionized the study of stars by observation of their natural oscillations, the field of asteroseismology , and Professor Kawaler has been in the vanguard of this work. During this visit colleagues will develop and pursue novel analysis techniques that will utilize Kepler data to study “red-giant” stars, which offer a window on the future of the Sun. Professors Kawaler and Chaplin are both on the Board of the TESS Asteroseismic Science Consortium, which will oversee and coordinate the international asteroseismology community’s work on upcoming NASA TESS Mission.
If you would like full details of the plans for Professor Kawaler’ s visit or would like to meet with him during his visit as an Institute of Advanced Studies Distinguished Visiting Fellow, please contact Sue Gilligan