Ed Cackett (ew1397)
University information
Title: Department Chair
Unit: Physics & Astronomy
Department: College of Liberal Arts & Science
Contact information
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Department:
Title:
Distinguished Service Professor
Secondary Title:
Chair, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Phone:
313-577 5432
Fax:
313-577-2721
Email:
ecackett@wayne.edu
Office:
Physics 135
Biography:
- Chair, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Wayne State University, August 2023 onwards
- Interim Chair, Department of Physics & Astronomy, Wayne State University, August 2022 - July 2023
- Professor, Wayne State University, August 2022-present
- Associate Professor, Wayne State University, 2016-2022
- Assistant Professor, Wayne State University, 2012-2016
- Postdoctral Research Fellow, Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, 2010-2011
- Schlumberger Research Fellow, Darwin College, University of Cambridge, 2010-2011
- Chandra Fellow, University of Michigan, 2008-2010
- Dean MacLaughlin Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Michigan, 2006-2008
Research interest(s)/area of expertise:
Astrophysics of compact objects (neutron stars and black holes), more specifically:
- Accretion across the mass scale: from neutron stars and black holes in X-ray binaries to Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN)
- Accretion disks around supermassive black holes
- Reverberation mapping in AGN (optical, UV and X-ray) and X-ray binaries (X-ray)
- Reflection and reverberation in neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries
- Observational probes of the neutron star dense matter equation of state (neutron star radii and masses)
- Accretion at low rates and quiescent emission from neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries
Research:
- Press-release and link to Nature cover article I co-authored (01/10/2019): Black hole research involving WSU astronomer makes front cover of Nature.
- Press-releases (31 May 2012) from NASA and ESA about a paper I co-authored.
Education:
- Ph.D., University of St Andrews, UK, 2007
- M. Sci., University of Durham, UK, 2003
Awards and grants:
- WSU Career Development Chair (2017)
- WSU Department of Physics & Astronomy Richard J. Barber Faculty Recognitiion Award (2017)
- NSF CAREER award (2014)
- Wayne State Academy of Scholars, Junior Faculty Award (2015)
- Sultana N. Nahar Prize for Distinction in Research in Physics and Astronomy, Wayne State University (2019)
Selected publications:
As of April 2024: 214 articles published in peer-reviewed journals.
An up-to-date lists of publications can be found using the following links:
Citation index:
- More than 11,700 total citations
- h-index: 62 (as of April 2024)
Planetarium
Title:
Associate Professor of Astronomy, Chair of Planetarium Advisory Board
Phone:
313-577-9355
Primary E-mail:
ecackett@wayne.edu
Courses taught by Ed Cackett
Winter Term 2024
Fall Term 2023
- AST1010 - Discovering the Universe
- PHY1001 - Perspectives in Physics, Biomedical Physics, and Astronomy
- PHY5620 - Electronics and Electrical Measurements
- PHY6991 - Special Topics
Fall Term 2022
- AST1010 - Discovering the Universe
- PHY1001 - Perspectives in Physics, Biomedical Physics, and Astronomy
- PHY5620 - Electronics and Electrical Measurements
Winter Term 2022
Recent university news spotlights
- WSU astronomer's pro-tips for Detroit's near total solar eclipse on April 8
- WSU astronomer's pro-tips for Detroit's near total solar eclipse on April 8
- Rubin: A discovery from on high — astronomers are geeked about the 2024 solar eclipse, too
- Wayne State grad students earn fellowships in support of NASA’s mission
- Wayne State grad students earn fellowships in support of NASA’s mission
- Fall 2023: Message from the Department Chair Ed Cackett
- Alumnus’s generous giving a fundamental part of Wayne State Physics and Astronomy