Dr. Richard Ellis

Biography

Richard Ellis is a prominent astrophysicist known for his research in extragalactic astronomy and astronomical instrumentation. He received his BSc in Astronomy from University College London in 1971 and later completed his DPhil in Astrophysics at the University of Oxford. He began his career at the University of Durham, where he developed a research program focused on extragalactic astronomy. Over the years, he held several prestigious positions, including Principal Research Fellow at the Royal Greenwich Observatory and Plumian Professor of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge. In 1999, he emigrated to the USA to become the Steele Professor of Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, where he directed the Palomar Observatory and contributed significantly to the Hubble Space Telescope’s Supernova Cosmology Project, discovering the universe's accelerating expansion. After 16 years at Caltech, he returned to Europe and is currently a Professor of Astrophysics at University College London. His research interests include the evolution of galaxies, cosmic reionization, and leveraging observational technologies like ALMA and the James Webb Space Telescope.

Research Interests

Experience