Here’s a recap of what’s in the news in and around the UMBC campus, originally brought to you by UMBC News.
This news recap is brought to you by UMBC’s Division of Professional Studies, offering a broad array of professionally-focused master’s degrees and certificate programs that address industry needs while anticipating future opportunities.
Reaching for the Stars
NASA recently released the Antares rocket and Cygnus capsule with supplies for the International Space Station (ISS) as well as 30 “cubesats”, one of which was created by a group of UMBC scientists and engineers. The small satellite, named Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter (HARP), will collect information that will help scientists gain a better understanding of climate and air quality concerns.
Above and Beyond
UMBC was named one of the best universities worldwide, highlighting the universities’ international leadership in geosciences and space science.
One Planet Further
UMBC’s Sander Goossens designed a new code for NASA to better understand the development of Mercury by analyzing the spin state and core structure of the planet. He hopes to build on previous research and apply the method even further, in order to make predictions about the evolution of planets.
Breaking Through the Clouds
Zhibo Zhang, associate professor of physics, was awarded grants to pursue projects in atmospheric research. This research includes how climate models incorporate the effect of clouds, as well as the question of whether dust in the atmosphere warms or cools the planet overall.