Christopher Stubbs (born March 12, 1958) is an

experimental physicist Experimental physics is the category of disciplines and sub-disciplines in the field of physics that are concerned with the observation of physical phenomena and experiments. Methods vary from discipline to discipline, from simple experiments and o ...

on the faculty at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in both the Department of Physics and the Department of Astronomy. He is the former Dean of Science at Harvard University and a former chair of Harvard's Department of Physics.

Biography

Stubbs received an

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the I ...

degree from Iranzamin International School in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

in 1975 and received a B.Sc. in

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1981. He received his Ph.D. in

from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

in 1988 working with Professor Eric Adelberger on experimental tests of

gravity In physics, gravity (), also known as gravitation or a gravitational interaction, is a fundamental interaction, a mutual attraction between all massive particles. On Earth, gravity takes a slightly different meaning: the observed force b ...

. His Ph.D. thesis ruled out the idea of a

fifth force In physics, a fifth force refers to a hypothetical fundamental interaction (also known as fundamental force) beyond the four known interactions in nature: gravitational, electromagnetic, strong nuclear, and weak nuclear forces. Some speculativ ...

, a proposed long range modification of

Ongoing projects

* Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) *Probing

dark energy In physical cosmology and astronomy, dark energy is a proposed form of energy that affects the universe on the largest scales. Its primary effect is to drive the accelerating expansion of the universe. It also slows the rate of structure format ...

with galaxy clusters. *Precise calibration of astronomical instruments. *Builder status on the

PanSTARRS The Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS1; obs. code: F51 and Pan-STARRS2 obs. code: F52) located at Haleakala Observatory, Hawaii, US, consists of astronomical cameras, telescopes and a computing facility that i ...

Project. *Testing foundations of gravity with lunar laser ranging, the

Apache Point Observatory Lunar Laser-ranging Operation The Apache Point Observatory Lunar Laser-ranging Operation, or APOLLO, is a project at the Apache Point Observatory in New Mexico. It is an extension and advancement of previous Lunar Laser Ranging experiments, which use retroreflectors on the ...

*Arms Control.

Past projects

*Laboratory tests of the

equivalence principle The equivalence principle is the hypothesis that the observed equivalence of gravitational and inertial mass is a consequence of nature. The weak form, known for centuries, relates to masses of any composition in free fall taking the same t ...

(with EotWash group, University of Washington) *Member of MACHO

gravitational microlensing Gravitational microlensing is an astronomical phenomenon caused by the gravitational lens effect. It can be used to detect objects that range from the mass of a planet to the mass of a star, regardless of the light they emit. Typically, astronom ...

project, a search for

dark matter In astronomy, dark matter is an invisible and hypothetical form of matter that does not interact with light or other electromagnetic radiation. Dark matter is implied by gravity, gravitational effects that cannot be explained by general relat ...

in the Milky Way that ruled out astrophysical objects as being the dark matter in our Galaxy. *Member of High-z Supernova Search Team, co-discovered the so-called

Reiss et al (High-z Team), ''Observational Evidence from Supernovae for an Accelerating Universe and a Cosmological Constant'', Ap J 116, 1009, (1998) *Lead scientist of the ESSENCE supernova cosmology survey, which probed the nature of dark energy. *Past project scientist for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST)

Awards

* Packard Fellow

David and Lucile Packard Foundation The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is a private foundation that provides grants to not-for-profit organizations. It was created in 1964 by David Packard (co-founder of HP) and his wife Lucile Salter Packard. Following David Packard's dea ...

* 1999, Fellow,

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of ...

. *1996: NAS Award for Initiatives in Research from the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

*2007:

Gruber Prize in Cosmology The Gruber Prize in Cosmology, established in 2000, is one of three prestigious international awards worth US$500,000 awarded by the Gruber Foundation, a non-profit organization based at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Since 2001, t ...

(co-recipient with High-z Supernova Search Team) * 2015:

Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics The Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics is one of the Breakthrough Prizes, awarded by the Breakthrough Prize Board. Initially named Fundamental Physics Prize, it was founded in July 2012 by Russia-born Israeli entrepreneur, venture capit ...

, shared with Brian P. Schmidt,

Adam Riess Adam Guy Riess (born December 16, 1969) is an American astrophysicist and Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University and the Space Telescope Science Institute. He is known for his research in using supernovae as cosmological ...

, and the High-Z Supernova Search Team.

References

External links

Christopher StubbsData on Asteroid Stubbs, 11713Google Scholar citations
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stubbs, Christopher 1958 births Living people 21st-century American physicists American experimental physicists Harvard University faculty University of Washington alumni University of Virginia alumni Fellows of the American Physical Society