David N. Spergel

Charles Young Professor of Astronomy, Princeton Univ. &

Founding Director, CCA, Flatiron Institute

http://www.astro.princeton.edu/~dns

 

Education:

PhD (Astronomy) Harvard 1985 Advisor: William H Press

Visiting Scholar, Oxford 1983 Advisor: James Binney

AB summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Princeton 1982, Adviser: Gillian Knapp

 

Appointments:

Flatiron Institute: Director, Center for Computational Astrophysics (2016-)

Princeton University, Department of Astrophysical Sciences: Charles A. Young Professor of Astronomy on the Class of 1897 Foundation (2007-2019) Emeritus after 7/1/2019; Currently, Associate Faculty in Physics and Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Professor, (1997-2007); Associate Professor (1992-1997); Assistant Professor (1987-1992).

Institute for Advanced Study: Long-Term Member Post-doctoral Mentor: John Bahcall (1985-1987), Keck Distinguished Visiting Professor (2000-1).

 

Honors and Awards:

Honorary Member, National Society of Black Physicists (2019) Breakthrough Prize (2018); NASA Exceptional Public Service Award (2017); Heineman Prize in Astrophysics (2015); Nature's Ten People Who Mattered in 2014; AAS Kavli Lecturer (2014); President's Distinguished Teaching Award (2013); Fellow, APS (2013); Time: "25 Most Influential People in Space" (2013); Amer. Acad. of Arts and Sciences (2012); Gruber Prize(2012); Shaw Prize in Astronomy (2010); NAS (2008); MacArthur Fellowship (2001); Time: "One of America's Top Scientists" (2001); Helen B. Warner Prize (1994); Presidential Young Investigator Award (1988); Sloan Research Fellow (1988).

 

Publications:

Spergel is the author of over 300 refereed papers with over 98,000 citations (Hirsch h=118).  He is the first author of the 1st and 3rd most cited papers in physics in the new millennium.  

 

Mentorship:

Spergel has mentored over 30 PhD students and 35 postdocs.   His mentees have been highly successful.  One metric is the list of prizes won by his students and postdocs just over the past few years: Sofja Kovalevskaja Award (1.45 MEuros; Hennawi), Order of the British Empire (Petters, Dunkley); Canadian Early Research Award, Bappu Gold Medal, Astronomical Society of India (Afshordi); Tinsley Prize (Dalcanton);   European Spanish National Research Prize (Verde); Research Council IDEAS Fellowship (1 M Euros: both Verde and Dunkley); Nishinomiya-Yukawa Prize, Hayashi Prize (Komatsu); Presidential Early Career Award (Bean); Cotrell (Bean); Philip Leverhulme Prize (Peiris); Fowler Prize (Peiris, Dunkley); Franklin Prize (Dunkley); Chamberlin Fellowship (Ho,Ferraro), Simons Fellowship (Hill) and Miller Fellowship (Sherwin,Ferraro,Schaan).

 

Leadership:

Spergel is the Founding Director of the Center for Computational Astrophysics. He has served as Department Chair from 2/2006- 6/2016 and served as Associate Chair from 2/1999 - 1/2006.  He chaired the NAS ASTRO 2010 Panel on Cosmology and Fundamental Physics, the KITP Advisory Board, the NASA Astrophysics Subcommittee, and NAS Space Study Board.  He is a founding PI of IPMU. He is the co-chair of the IAU Commission on International Cooperation. He co-chairs the WFIRST Science Working Group.