The Department of Astronomy offers undergraduate and graduate instruction in a wide variety of fields, including theoretical and observational astrophysics; infrared, optical, and radio astronomy; galactic structure and dynamics of stellar systems; high-energy astrophysics and cosmology; and spectroscopy. A considerable amount of research and teaching related to astronomy is done in other units at Berkeley, including the Space Science Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, and the Physics Department. Various professors in the Chemistry, Earth and Planetary Science, Mathematics, Statistics, and Engineering departments have an active interest in astronomy and are available for consultation.

Slideshow

  • Image of Campbell Hall, home of the Department of Astronomy:

    Campbell Hall, home of the Department of Astronomy

    This new state-of-the-art facility houses our faculty, members, and our in-house research units, resources, and labs.

  • Image of Astronomy Night: A New Stargazing and Lecture Event!:

    Astronomy Night: A New Stargazing and Lecture Event!

    On the first Thursday of the month come join our department for a lecture and guided stargazing! Visit our events page for full details.

  • Image of Remain Fashionable Anywhere in the Universe:

    Remain Fashionable Anywhere in the Universe

    Check out department merch under our Friends and Fans section!

  • Image of Help Restore Leuschner Observatory!:

    Help Restore Leuschner Observatory!

    Read about the efforts to restore Leuschner Observatory in Department News (Photos Cathy Dausman)

  • Image of Campbell Hall Rooftop Dome Observatory:

    Campbell Hall Rooftop Dome Observatory

    The Rooftop Dome Observatory, featuring the Richard Treffers Telescope, is just one of many department research and observing resources. Photo by Michael O'Callahan Photography.

Prospective Students

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Why Berkeley Astronomy

Find out how UC Berkeley Astronomy can assist in your journey for higher education. More

News from the Nebula

Astronomer Daniel Weisz was awarded the 2019 Newton Lacy Pierce Prize by the American Astronomical Society.

Young astronomer honored for research on smallest galaxies in the universe

Daniel Weisz, an assistant professor of astronomy at UC Berkeley, was honored at this week’s meeting of the American Astronomical Society for his early-career research on relatively nearby “dwarf” galaxies using the Hubble Space Telescope. He received the 2019 Newton Lacy Pierce Prize “for his transformational work on the star-formation histories of dwarf galaxies in the Local Group, our galactic neighborhood.” Weisz came to UC Berkeley in the summer of 2016 and focuses on stars, dark matter and galaxies near Earth, in particular the Local Group of galaxies that includes some 100 mostly small galaxies surrounding the two heavies, our own Milky Way and Andromeda. More

Friends and Fans

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Get Involved With Astronomy!

Find ways to support and join in on department fun. More