Department of Physics and Astronomy - Minnesota State University Moorhead

Department of Physics and Astronomy
College of Health, Science, & the Environment

Department Seminar (Friday, April 21 at 3:00pm in Hagen Hall 325)The Martens Observatory: UND's and North Dakota's Largest Telescope Facility by Tim Young (UND)
The Martens-Kraus Telescope at the Martens Observatory is a 0.51-meter (20 inch) telescope made possible by a donation by Erwin Martens. The telescope is nearing remote capabilities and is primarily a student research facility for undergraduate and graduate students. It can image objects like supernovae, novae, asteroids, transiting exoplanets, galaxies and clusters of galaxies with the SBIG CCD camera. This summer the telescope is being set up for spectroscopy with the Shelyak spectrometer. The talk will describe the challenges of setting up a functional observatory, the choices UND made in designing the facility, and the science done with the observatory.>

Department News

Ever thought about being a Learning Assistant? Would you like to be gainfully employed working for the Department? Our department is looking for experienced Physics and Astronomy students to be Learning Assistants in our lectures and labs for Fall 2017. Download the application and apply before 4:30pm on Monday, April 3.

Want A Scholarship? We have identified seven scholarships on our scholarships page that physics majors can qualify for that currently have open deadlines. Apply now!
Planetarium, Physics & Astronomy awarded Eclipse Outreach Grant: Sara Schultz (Planetarium Director) and Juan Cabanela (Physics/Astronomy Faculty) have been awarded an American Astronomical Society (AAS) grant to support 2017 Great North American Eclipse outreach. More details can be found by following the link. (February 22)
Making a Big Difference: Two of our Alumni, Charles Conduah '06 and Libby Hegge '08, are featured in MSUM's alumni magazine because of their successful careers in Medical Physics. Careers that started because of their experiences at MSUM! (November 5)

Mission Statement

Our mission is to provide excellent undergraduate instruction in physics and astronomy. In lower division courses, faculty use lecture demonstrations, cooperative learning methods, hands-on activities, and field trips to develop a broad working knowledge of physics. In upper division courses, in addition to the above methods, students learn through cooperative projects, research with faculty, and hands-on instrumentation and computation projects.

About the Department of Physics and Astronomy

The MSUM Physics and Astronomy program is a student-centered program. We provide students with educational opportunities in the classroom and outside it in order to improve their preparation for a career using physics.

We have facilities including a nanotechnology and robotics lab, a student-built NMR machine, and the Paul P. Feder observatory.

Our faculty have high quality research programs in space physics, robotics, extragalactic, galactic, and solar system astrophysics, and physics education. Our undergraduate students participate in these research programs and gain experience to prepare them for careers in physics and related fields.

Contact Information
Office: Hagen Hall 307
Phone: (218) 477-2141
Email: lindellj@mnstate.edu

Send ground mail to:
Department of Physics and Astronomy
Minnesota State University Moorhead
1104 7th Avenue South, Hagen Hall 307
Moorhead, MN 56563

An interactive campus map of Minnesota State University Moorhead is available to find Hagen Hall.