Rate My Professor Aaron Romanowski

Aaron J. Romanowsky is Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at San José State University, where he joined as Assistant Professor in 2012 and advanced to Associate Professor in 2016 with early tenure and promotion, followed by promotion to Full Professor in 2020. He holds a Ph.D. in Astronomy from Harvard University (1999), with a dissertation on the structure and dynamics of galaxies supervised by Christopher Kochanek; an M.A. in Astronomy from Harvard (1996); and a B.S. in Physics with High Honors from the University of California, Santa Barbara (1994). Prior appointments include Adjunct Professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz (2021–present), Research Associate at University of California Observatories (2012–2021), Researcher in Astronomy at the University of Concepción (2005–2007), Visiting Adjunct Professor at the National University of La Plata (2002–2004), Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham (1999–2002), and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (1994–1999).

Romanowsky's research focuses on astrophysics, specializing in galaxy formation and dynamics, dark matter halos, globular clusters, and ultra-diffuse galaxies, with contributions to surveys like SLUGGS, SAGES, and studies of dark matter-deficient systems such as NGC 1052-DF2. Key publications include "Connection between dwarf galaxies and globular clusters: insights from the Perseus Cluster using Subaru imaging and Keck spectroscopy" (Astrophys. J., 2026), "A Pearl in the Shell: an ultra-compact dwarf within the tidal debris surrounding spiral galaxy NGC 7531" (Astron. Astrophys., 2025), "Reconstructing the genesis of a globular cluster system at a look-back time of 9.1 Gyr with the JWST" (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc., 2023), "Low-density star cluster formation: discovery of a young faint fuzzy on the outskirts of the low-mass spiral galaxy NGC 247" (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc., 2023), "The globular clusters and star formation history of the isolated, quiescent ultra-diffuse galaxy DGSAT I" (Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc., 2022), and "A deficit of dark matter from Jeans modeling of the ultra-diffuse galaxy NGC 1052-DF2" (Astrophys. J. Lett., 2018). His achievements are honored with the Fellowship of the California Academy of Sciences (2025–), San José State University President’s Scholar Award (2022–2023), Research Corporation for Science Advancement Cottrell Scholar Award (2016), San José State University Early Career Investigator Award (2015), and Harvard University Certificate of Distinction in Teaching (1996). Romanowsky has delivered over 100 invited talks and colloquia worldwide and actively supervises student research.