RESEARCH

Astronomy

The Maria Mitchell Association’s Astronomy Department has been engaged in cutting-edge research for over a century, contributing in important ways to our knowledge and understanding of the universe.


Astronomers at the Maria Mitchell Observatory study a broad range of astronomical objects and phenomena including planets, stars and star clusters, interstellar clouds of gas and dust, astrophysical masers, galaxies and the expanding universe.


Research at the MMO uses observational data obtained with our telescopes on Nantucket and other leading ground-based telescopes around the world, as well as space-based observatories such as the Hubble Space Telescope. The results of these investigations are published in leading scientific journals and have received financial support from the U.S. National Science Foundation, NASA and other scientific funding agencies.


The MMO also holds a substantial collection of 8000+ photographic plates obtained with its 7.5-inch Cooke/Clark refractor between 1913 to 1995. These plates were digitized between 2001-2002. To read more about these plates and access the catalogue, click here.

In addition to the research done by MMO astronomers, important discoveries have also been made by students who participate in the Maria Mitchell Association’s National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (NSF-REU) program and by visiting astronomers who come to use our 17-inch and 24-inch research telescopes on Nantucket. Read more about past NSF-REU projects here.

In 2019 the MMO was awarded a new National Science Foundation grant to support a year-round, post-baccalaureate Research Fellow in the field of fast radio burst (FRB) follow-up science. For more information, please visit the FRB Follow-up Research page or to apply for the MMO Research Fellowship click here.

Share by: