Â鶹ÊÓƵ

I joined the Â鶹ÊÓƵ in 1979, becoming Professor of Astrophysics & Space Science (2003), Head of Physics & Astronomy (2005-09), Pro-Vice Chancellor/Head of Science & Engineering (2009-16) and Pro-Vice Chancellor/Director of the Leicester Institute of Space & Earth Observation (2016-19). I have been involved in many space missions including Voyager, ROSAT, EUVE, FUSE, Hubble and ESA’s Gaia astrometry mission. I have been a member of the ESA Astronomy Working Group, UKSA Science Programme Advisory Committee and President of the Royal Astronomical Society (2014-16). In 2019 I chaired the programme committee of the UK Space Conference. I was Chair of Space Telescope Institute Council, a member of the board of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy from 2016-2022 and was Chair of the UK Space Agency Science Programme Advisory Committee from 2019 to 2022. I devised the concept of Space Park Leicester creating an economic space cluster with industry partners and have been a leader in its development. I am now Director of Strategic Partnerships for the project. I also led the SPRINT project supporting growth of small companies in the space sector. I led the creation of the Midlands Innovation Space Group within the Midlands Innovation group of eight research intensive universities and have chaired the group since 2019. Since 2022, I have led the development of the Midlands Space Cluster, as part of the national network of clusters supported by the UK Space Agency.

My research has always spanned both instrument development and observations with a range of space and ground-based facilities. I have a particular interest in UV and Extreme UV astronomy flying research rockets to develop new instrumentation for these wavebands some of which have translated into satellite missions. I have been involved in many space missions including Voyager ROSAT EUVE FUSE Hubble and ESA’s Gaia astrometry mission. My personal research is on hot white dwarf stars and the interstellar medium and I have more than 500 publications in these fields including a number of edited texts and conference proceedings as well as a monograph (with Jay Holberg) on Extreme Ultraviolet Astronomy. I am a strong advocate for translating research into economic and societal impact and have worked within RCUK with the Satellite Applications Catapult and others. I was PI of SPRINT which helped small companies access academic expertise and facilities in UK universities.

I am leading two space mission developments that have been funded by the UK Space Agency:

SIRIUS is a low-cost mission carrying a highly capable EUV spectrograph to study the galactic environment, including stellar coronae, white dwarf atmospheres and the local interstellar medium.

The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) will be the next NASA-led flagship mission, with a key goal to search for Earth-like planets orbiting nearby stars and study their atmospheres and surfaces for signs of life. HWO will, however, be a general observatory capable of carrying out a broad range of scientific studies. I am coordinating development of the UK community interest and HWO and provision of a UK-led instrument for the telescope.

A complete list of my publications, for which I have more than 37,000 citations (h-index = 60), can be accessed on ADS:  

I am course Director for the MSc in Space Exploration Systems. I also teach PA2240 - Electromagnetic Fields andPA3602 - Stellar Astrophysics undergraduate modules.

I am a Fellow of the Institute of Physics and a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society. I have participated in many committees in support of the science community. Key ones are:

Member Wakeham Panel RCUK review of Physics

Council member Science and Technology Facilities Council

Member HEFCE REF2014 Panel for Physics

Member ESA Astronomy Working Group

Member UKSA Science Programme Advisory Committee

Member Council Royal Astronomical Society

Secretary Council Royal Astronomical Society

Member HEFCE impact panel for physics

President-elect Royal Astronomical Society

President Royal Astronomical Society Member Space Telescope Institute Council

Chair Space Telescope Institute Council

LUVOIR Science and Technology Development Team (STDT) - Observer for UKSA

Springer-Praxis Astronomy & Astrophysics Library editorial board

Member AURA board

Chair UKSA Science Programme Advisory Committee

Advisor ESA Science Programme Committee

Member UKSA Space Exploration Advisory Committee

Associate Editor for Springer’s Experimental Astronomy

Member Research England REF2020 panel for Physics

Member of HWO working group on Evolution of the Elements; co-chair of the sub-group on Stellar Systems

Member of the UK Space Skills Advisory Panel

Member of the Institute of Physics Space Group

NASA Group Achievement Award 1991

Director NATO Advanced Research Workshop - “8th European Workshop on White Dwarfs” SERC/PPARC Advanced Fellow

Vernon Memorial Lecturer University of Delaware

Annual Isaac Newton Lecture

Annual Flamsteed Lecture

Secretary Royal Astronomical Society

President-elect Royal Astronomical Society

President Royal Astronomical Society

Programme Chair UK Space Conference 2019

Conference Chair IAU Symposium 357

NASA Group Achievement Award 2021 

NASA Group Achievement Award 2025