Barbara Sue Ryden (born May 2, 1961) is an American astrophysicist who is a Professor of Astronomy at Ohio State University. Her research considers the formation, shape and structure of galaxies. She was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2016.

Early life and education

Ryden studied physics and integrated sciences at Northwestern University.[1] She moved to Princeton University as a doctoral student, where she worked alongside James Gunn.[2] She was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics.[citation needed]

Research and career

Ryden joined the faculty at Ohio State University in 1992. She studies the formation and shapes of galaxies.[3][4] Her research made use of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and various numerical simulations.[5] She has shown that the galactic disks at the centre of spiral galaxies are more elliptical than circular.[6]

Ryden has written several astronomy textbooks, including Introduction to Cosmology, Interstellar and Intergalactic Medium and Foundations of Astrophysics.[citation needed]

Awards and honors

Selected publications

Books

References