Prof Walter K Gear
Overview
Position:Head of School
Email:Walter.GearTelephone:
Location:N/1.05
Research Interests
Observational Cosmology: Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), in particular CMB polarization, High Z Submillimetre Galaxies.
Astronomical Instrumentation at millimetre and submillimetre waveleghts.
The SPIRE instrument on the Herschel satellite.
Physics of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN): in particular understanding the structure and dynamics of relativistic jets.
Measures of Esteem
Over the years I have sat on many national and international peer review committees and telescope boards. I have just stood down after 2 years being:
- Chair, Particle Physics, Astronomy and Nuclear Physics Science Committee (PPAN)
For more information about STFC and the role of PPAN, visit the Science and Technology Facilities Council website.
I am also Member and STFC representative, European Science Foundation Standing Committee on Physical Science and Engineering.
Teaching
PX4215: High-energy Astrophysics PC2220: PLanetary Systems (for this year only) I also recently taught PX2224: Electromagnetism
Admin Duties
- Head of School
- Head of Astronomy Instrumentation Group
Publications
Recent Highlights:
"Small angular scale measurements of the CMB temperature power spectrum from QUAD" on astro-ph. here
"Second and third season QUaD CMB temperature and polarization power spectra" on astro-ph. here
"Detecting the B-mode Polarisation of the CMB with Clover" on astro-ph
hereA complete list of my publications may be found on the SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS), also available ranked in citation order.
Biography
I graduated from Queen Mary, University of London with First Class BSc Astrophysics in 1981, and with a PhD in Millimetre and Submillimetre studies of AGN in 1985. I moved to a postdoc at the then Preston Polytechnic (now University of Central Lancashire) in 1984, continuing to work in the same field and then joined the Royal Observatory Edinburgh in 1986 where I proposed and led the construction of the SCUBA camera for the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii, which was commissioned in 1996 and began operations in 1997. After returning to Edinburgh in 1997 I moved to University College London Mullard Space Science Laboratory and then in 1999 moved to take up a new chair in Astronomical Instrumentation in Cardiff. What started with just myself and a technician is now the largest group in the School with over 40 members. In August 2005 I became Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy.
Postgraduate Students
PhD Students
Abigail Turner and David Porter
PDRAs
Sujata Gupta and Andreas Papageorgeou
Clover Project Manager
Astronomy Instrumentations Group Programme Manager
School Administrator
School Superintendent
Schools Liaison Officer