Welcome to the Astronomy Home

The Astronomy branch of Macalester's Physics Department provides a variety of courses as well as edifying faciities for students interested in the study of the universe itself.

The Astronomy Emphasis physics major allows interested students to explore both theoretical and observational astrophysics. These classes build fundamental skills that are suitable for graduate study in exciting areas such as planets, stars, galaxies, and the nature of the cosmos itself.

Astronomy Emphasis

Astronomy News

NSF Astronomy & Astrophysics Research Grant Received

This “Research at Undergraduate Institutions” award, totaling $295,659, provides three years of support for the “Survey of HI in Extremely Low-mass Dwarfs” (SHIELD). SHIELD, led at Macalester by Professor John Cannon, is an ongoing study, using data from various ground- and space-based observatories, of the physical characteristics of extremely low-mass galaxies in the local universe.