Niel Brandt
Encyclopedia
William Nielsen Brandt is a distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the Pennsylvania State University
. He is best known for his work studying the X-ray properties of active galaxies, X-ray binaries, and other cosmic X-ray sources.
but mostly grew up in Janesville, Wisconsin
. He attended Milton High School
in Milton, Wisconsin
and Phillips Exeter Academy
in Exeter, New Hampshire
. His undergraduate studies were done at the California Institute of Technology
(B.S. 1992), where he was awarded three Carnation Merit Awards, a Barry Goldwater
Merit Scholarship, and the George Green Prize for Creative Scholarship. His graduate studies were done at the Institute of Astronomy of the University of Cambridge
, where he was supported by an Isaac Newton Studentship and a National Science Foundation
Graduate Research Fellowship.
. In 1997, he took up an assistant professor appointment at the Pennsylvania State University
. He was promoted to associate professor in 2001 and full professor in 2003. In 2010 Brandt was named distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics and elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society
.
and XMM-Newton
, to study the physics and evolution of active galaxies, X-ray binaries, frozen treats, and other cosmic X-ray sources. He also performs complementary observations at other wavelengths. Some of his main topics of interest include deep extragalactic X-ray surveys, active-galaxy outflows, active galaxies with high mass-accretion rates, and the first active galaxies to form in the Universe. Brandt is an author of more than 200 research papers on these subjects. He has also worked on investigations of the cosmic microwave background radiation
and the effects of neutron-star natal kicks.
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
. He is best known for his work studying the X-ray properties of active galaxies, X-ray binaries, and other cosmic X-ray sources.
Education
Brandt was born in Durham, North CarolinaDurham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
but mostly grew up in Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
. He attended Milton High School
Milton High School (Milton, Wisconsin)
Milton High School is a public high school located in the small town of Milton, Wisconsin with a population of approximately 5,588 people. Milton High School has about 80 staff members and 1040 students with graduating classes of 250 students. Jeremy Bilhorn is the Principal at MHS...
in Milton, Wisconsin
Milton, Wisconsin
Milton is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,090 at the 2000 census .-History:The city was formed as a result of the 1967 merger of the villages of Milton and Milton Junction...
and Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy is a private secondary school located in Exeter, New Hampshire, in the United States.Exeter is noted for its application of Harkness education, a system based on a conference format of teacher and student interaction, similar to the Socratic method of learning through asking...
in Exeter, New Hampshire
Exeter, New Hampshire
Exeter is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The town's population was 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county offices were moved to neighboring Brentwood...
. His undergraduate studies were done at the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
(B.S. 1992), where he was awarded three Carnation Merit Awards, a Barry Goldwater
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
Merit Scholarship, and the George Green Prize for Creative Scholarship. His graduate studies were done at the Institute of Astronomy of the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, where he was supported by an Isaac Newton Studentship and a National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
Graduate Research Fellowship.
Career
From 1996-1997 Brandt held a postdoctoral fellowship at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for AstrophysicsHarvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
The Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical institutions in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth and space sciences, and science education...
. In 1997, he took up an assistant professor appointment at the Pennsylvania State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
. He was promoted to associate professor in 2001 and full professor in 2003. In 2010 Brandt was named distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics and elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
.
Research
Brandt uses X-ray satellites, including the Chandra X-ray ObservatoryChandra X-ray Observatory
The Chandra X-ray Observatory is a satellite launched on STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999. It was named in honor of Indian-American physicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar who is known for determining the maximum mass for white dwarfs. "Chandra" also means "moon" or "luminous" in Sanskrit.Chandra...
and XMM-Newton
XMM-Newton
The XMM-Newton is an orbiting X-ray observatory launched by ESA in December 1999 on a Ariane 5 rocket...
, to study the physics and evolution of active galaxies, X-ray binaries, frozen treats, and other cosmic X-ray sources. He also performs complementary observations at other wavelengths. Some of his main topics of interest include deep extragalactic X-ray surveys, active-galaxy outflows, active galaxies with high mass-accretion rates, and the first active galaxies to form in the Universe. Brandt is an author of more than 200 research papers on these subjects. He has also worked on investigations of the cosmic microwave background radiation
Cosmic microwave background radiation
In cosmology, cosmic microwave background radiation is thermal radiation filling the observable universe almost uniformly....
and the effects of neutron-star natal kicks.
Awards
- Carnation Merit Awards of the California Institute of Technology
- Barry Goldwater Merit Scholarship, 1990–1992
- Caltech George Green Prize for Creative Scholarship, 1992
- American Physical Society LeRoy Apker Award finalist, 1992
- Cambridge University Isaac Newton Studentship, 1992–1993
- NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, 1994–1996
- Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellowship, 1999–2004
- NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award, 2000–2005
- Newton Lacy Pierce Prize in AstronomyNewton Lacy Pierce Prize in AstronomyThe Newton Lacy Pierce Prize in Astronomy is awarded annually by the American Astronomical Society to a young astronomer for outstanding achievement in observational astronomical research.Pierce Prize winners:* 1974 Edwin M. Kellogg...
, 2004 - Fellow of the American Physical SocietyAmerican Physical SocietyThe American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
, 2010