Prof. Aprahamian Recognized at Notre Dame Game

Provost Tom Burish recognized Professor of Physics Ani Aprahamian during the third quarter of the Notre Dame vs. U of Pittsburgh football game on Nov. 1, 2008. A member of the Notre Dame faculty since 1989, Aprahamian was one of six faculty chosen to be recognized for their research accomplishments this academic year. She received a football autographed by coach Charlie Weiss.           

 

 

 

 

 

“We are all made of star stuff,” the astronomer Carl Sagan once said.

From an early age, Ani Aprahamian has been intrigued by “star stuff,” particularly the nuclear reactions at the heart of stars, supernovae and other cosmic events. And that passion has led to groundbreaking research, and a leading role in shaping physics higher education.

Aprahamian’s research is aimed at gaining an understanding the origin of the elements of the universe. In her laboratory, she attempts to duplicate the nuclear processes in the universe that control stellar evolution, trigger supernova events, and lead to thermonuclear explosions observed as novae, and X-ray bursts. Aprahamian has been the director of the Nuclear Science Laboratory at Notre Dame which is the longest continuously funded research effort at Notre Dame. Aprahamian also was instrumental in gaining a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation to establish a physics frontier center at Notre Dame named JINA — The Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics — a collaborative effort between researchers at Notre Dame, Michigan State University and the University of Chicago. Housed at Notre Dame, the institute joins together the research efforts in separate disciplines ranging from astronomy to astrophysics to nuclear physics to study the broad range of nuclear processes in the universe.