CWRU Department of Physics

09/02/2026

Members of the Starkman group recently represented Case Western Reserve University at the 29th International Conference on Particle Physics & Cosmology (COSMO-2026) in Leiden, Netherlands!
Distinguished Professor Glenn Starkman and Postdoctoral Scholar Deyan Mihaylov can be seen on the left-hand side of the group photo, along with Postdoctoral Scholar Anna Negro and former visitors Mikel Martin and Javier Carron.

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08/30/2026

David Gerdes, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Physics, was recently featured in CNET reflecting on 20 years since Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet.

Gerdes discusses how our understanding and classification of objects in the solar system evolve as new discoveries are made, drawing connections between Pluto and objects such as Ceres, Pallas and Vesta, which were once considered planets before astronomers discovered the much larger population we now call the asteroid belt.

As the debate over Pluto’s status continues, Gerdes explains how new discoveries continue to challenge the ways astronomers define and categorize the worlds in our solar system.

Read more from here: https://www.cnet.com/science/space/20-years-since-astronomers-decided-pluto-isnt-a-planet/

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08/21/2026

Distinguished Professor of Physics Robert Brown was recently interviewed by Cleveland.com, where he corrected a calculation concerning the speed of baseballs dropped from Cleveland’s Terminal Tower.

The original reports estimated that the baseballs were traveling about 138 mph when they reached the ground. However, that calculation did not take air resistance into account. Brown explained that air drag is critical in determining the actual speed of a falling baseball.

Using a more realistic calculation that includes air resistance, the baseball would reach approximately 90 mph, rather than 138 mph. As the ball accelerates under gravity, air resistance increases until it balances the force of gravity, producing what is known as terminal velocity (pun intended).

At roughly 90 mph, the baseball would be traveling at nearly the speed of a professional fastball. Brown also explained that although a professional baseball player might be capable of catching such a ball, it would be dangerous for an average person to attempt.

Professor Browns interview was also featured on todays copy of The Daily! https://case.edu/news/

Find the full interview here: https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2026/08/drop-a-baseball-off-terminal-tower-its-been-done.html

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08/20/2026

Meet Phoebe, a CWRU Physics undergrad working with Professor Benjamin Monreal on Project 8 to help develop methods for measuring the neutrino mass.

Her research uses machine learning and PyTorch neural networks to analyze power spectral density data and identify frequency bands. Distinguishing central and side bands can help determine the electron’s incident angle and total energy, key information for measuring neutrino mass.

Her favorite part of research has been learning machine learning, exploring the Python packages necessary to do so, and discovering different techniques.

Her advice to students interested in research? Start early, even if you haven’t taken the prerequisites, attend lab meetings or talk with professors about their research. Getting involved early can give you a huge head start on a project.

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08/20/2026

Last week, the Starkman Lab took a trip to Niagara Falls and the Gerry Rodeo in Upstate New York. The group had a great time taking a break from their work and enjoying the weekend together! They are now back on campus and continuing their studies of the topology of the Universe as part of the COMPACT collaboration.

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08/17/2026

In honor of the 2026 total solar eclipse visible from Greenland, Iceland, and Northern Spain, we’re highlighting two Beauty in Physics submissions taken from the 2024 total solar eclipse. It’s especially fitting as Dean David Gerdes recently traveled to Spain to chase this year’s eclipse! ☀️🌒

The first attached imagine is from Jared May. He used composite images to capture the total solar eclipse over Cleveland on April 8, 2024. Combining more than 35 photographs taken with three cameras, the image follows the Sun as the Moon gradually covered and uncovered it, while telescope images reveal details of the eclipse and a wide-field exposure captures the colors of the sky during totality.

The second imagine is from Jack Cencula’s submission and uses multiple exposures to capture the full extent of the solar corona. Because cameras cannot capture the bright inner corona and faint outer corona in a single exposure, Jack blended images taken at different exposure lengths to reveal the extended corona without overexposing the regions near the solar disk.

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08/14/2026

Professor Stacy McGaugh, chair of the Department of Astronomy was also recently featured in The Daily for his insights on a Newsweek article examining Reflect Orbital’s plans for space-based mirrors designed to reflect sunlight back to Earth.

McGaugh warned that the proposed satellites could worsen light pollution, interfere with astronomical observations and research, and have broader effects on nocturnal wildlife. As the number of satellites in orbit continues to grow, astronomers are raising important questions about how these technologies could change our ability to observe and study the night sky.

Read more about Professor McGaugh’s perspective and the potential impact of Reflect Orbital’s plans in The Daily or below
https://www.newsweek.com/concerns-space-mirror-light-up-earth-reflect-orbital-12295679

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The new technology aims to reflect sunlight back to Earth to illuminate streets and neighborhoods without electricity after dark.

08/14/2026

David Gerdes, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Physics, was recently featured in The Daily following his travels to Spain to witness the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse.

As a solar system astronomer and longtime eclipse chaser, Gerdes served as the “trip astronomer” for an astronomy-themed tour through Spain, sharing the science behind eclipses and helping travelers prepare for 104 seconds of totality in Burgos.

For Gerdes, eclipses are more than astronomical events. They are shared experiences that connect us to the past, present and future.

Read more about his journey here! https://case.edu/news/why-one-cwru-astronomer-keeps-chasing-total-solar-eclipses

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When David Gerdes, PhD, was 15, he convinced his middle school science teacher, several friends and their parents to rent an RV and drive from Hudson,...

08/10/2026

CWRU Professor Pavel Fileviez Pérez and graduate students Hridoy Debnath and Grace Miller are exploring a possible connection between two major questions in physics: why neutrinos have mass and the strong CP problem.

Their research investigates whether the same physics responsible for the Peccei–Quinn mechanism, which addresses the strong CP problem and predicts the QCD axion, could also generate neutrino masses. They study several models connecting axions and neutrinos and explore the common feature of axion-neutrino interactions. If axions make up dark matter, these interactions could produce a detectable neutrino signal, offering a new way for future experiments to search for axion dark matter.
Read the paper here: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2608.05150

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08/05/2026

Researchers from Case Western Reserve University and the University of Chicago have published a new paper introducing Multi-Mapping, a novel approach for modeling beam systematics in cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiments.

The work features contributions from CWRU Physics graduate student Cesiley L. King and faculty members John Ruhl and Johanna Nagy. By improving simulations of instrumental effects, Multi-Mapping helps researchers better understand and reduce potential sources of error, enabling even more precise measurements of the oldest light in the universe.

Read the preprint: https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.24605

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