East Texas A&M University Physics and Astronomy

02/27/2026

In the Department of Physics and Astronomy at East Texas A&M University, our students are training for the highly technical careers of the mid-21st century. From education and engineering to pushing the bounds of human knowledge in physics and astronomy, our students are constantly seeking to transform their lives and their world.

The department endeavors to support our students' mission. We pay our students to be learning assistants in the classroom -- peer mentors passing on their knowledge and expertise to the next year. We support their scientific research through paid assistantships and cutting edge equipment and supplies. We support their travel to present their work at professional conferences on the regional, state, national, and even international level. We provide them with networking opportunities and facilitate social interactions as they build healthy work-life balances. And we applaud all of our students as they succeed day after day, year after year.

Now, we ask you to help us support our students by donating to the department on during East Texas A&M University's Giving Day, which runs through March 5. 100% of your financial support will go toward supporting our students in the multitude of ways we have mentioned.

Please support our program by making any size donation to the department vis the link below. Even a few dollars will help!

Our thanks to each and every one of you for your support. !

Proud to support Physics at ET—where curiosity meets discovery. 🦁💙💛

02/24/2026

Last weekend the East Texas A&M University Planetarium celebrated its 20th year of serving students and the public in north Texas.

Planetaria are expensive. Not just to build, but also to maintain and to upgrade the equipment and computing needed to provide a jaw-dropping educational experience to our visitors. It simply is not possible to provide this experience without financial support from East Texas A&M University and the Texas A&M System. If we were to try and cover the costs through ticket sales, the prices would be astronomical. Out of this world. Pick your favorite space pun-based metaphor. But frankly, it would be unaffordable for the many school students and members of the public that walk through our doors.

Thankfully, the university and system continue to generously supply the funding needed to maintain a world-class facility in our outpost of northeast Texas.

Congratulations to all the planetarium staff, past and present, who make this facility the success it is!

East Texas A&M welcomed around 450 visitors to campus to celebrate the anniversary of the university’s Planetarium at the McFarland Science Building.

02/18/2026

Following the April 2024 eclipse, Physics and Astronomy department collected over 120,000 used and unused eclipse glasses from students, private citizens and library partners throughout Texas, and individuals from as far away as New England.

Today, in partnership with Astronomers Without Borders, we begin redistributing these glasses for use in upcoming solar eclipses 7000 are headed to Argentina, and 100,000 are headed to the UK for use in Europe and Africa.

A giant thank you to everyone who contributed their lightly-used and unused glasses, and to the students and staff who helped to organize and verify the safety of each pair of glasses.

Here’s wishing clear skies to the recipients!

02/17/2026

ETAMU is a full member of SARA Observatory! Our faculty routinely use this telescope, as well as the others operated by the consortium.

I spy with my little eye… a flamingo 🦩

The Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA) Consortium operates the 0.9-meter SARA Kitt Peak Telescope at NSF Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. The Consortium’s ties to Florida make the flamingo a fitting mascot! Can you spot the iconic pink flamingo outside the 0.9-meter dome? 🔍

Fun fact 💡 This isn’t the only telescope the SARA Consortium operates at NOIRLab observatories! They operate the 0.6-meter SARA Cerro Tololo Telescope at NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile.

📷 Kitt Peak National Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Marenfeld

02/16/2026

faculty member Dr. Billy Quarles recently sat down to chat with the American Astronomical Society about a potential lack of habitable moons around exoplanets. RIP Yavin 4 and Endor.

Billy Quarles (East Texas A&M University) chats about his article on the stability and lifetime of large (Luna-like) moons accounting for the effects of thre...

02/16/2026

Need something to do next Saturday? Come celebrate the East Texas A&M University Planetarium’s 20th Anniversary with us!

01/20/2026

Due to the forecasted winter weather, the East Texas A&M University Planetarium 20th Anniversary Gala has been postponed until Saturday, February 21 from 3-5pm. Come join us then!

P.S. The rumor that we will have the first ever "Planetarium on Ice" production this weekend is incorrect. Please stay home and stay warm! 😁

01/09/2026

12/13/2025

It's graduation weekend at East Texas! Today two excellent undergraduates, Savannah and Joshua, are graduating from our program. Both are returning in the spring as graduate students, so thankfully we needn't say goodbye yet!

Yesterday we also graduated three students from our masters program in physics with emphasis in physics education, and we are excited to see them ply their craft in teaching physics to the next generation.

Yesterday was also bittersweet, as we awarded a posthumous masters degree to Frank, a masters student and former undergraduate physics graduate of ours, who passed away after a life long battle with muscular dystrophy earlier this semester. Frank's parents received a standing ovation from the audience at the ceremony. While we deeply regret the loss of Frank and the inability to see him cross the stage to collect the degree himself, we take comfort in remembering his dedication to the science, his warmth, his humor, and his positive impact upon this department and all in it.

12/08/2025

Travel tip: If you are visiting a planet orbiting a red dwarf star and think you see a moon, that's no moon. It's likely to be a fully operational battle station.

professor Billy Quarles has contributed to a newly-published study asking whether exoplanets orbiting small, faint stars can have moons for an extended period of time.

New ETAMU study shows moons around the planets of M-dwarf stars vanish quickly, offering insights into which worlds might support life.

11/12/2025

You have the potential to see the northern lights (the aurora borealis) tonight! Best time is likely after dark until 9pm or so, and look to the north. Cameras can catch a much better view than your eyes, so if you aren't sure if you see anything, try your phone.