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Mark J. Devlin

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Mark J. Devlin
Devlin on Cerro Toco in Northern Chile in 2023
Born
New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA
Known forBLAST
RelativesPaul Devlin (brother)
Academic background
EducationBA, 1988, University of Wisconsin–Madison
MSc, PhD, 1993, University of California, Berkeley
ThesisMeasurements of anisotropy in the cosmic microwave background on degree angular scales (1994)
Doctoral advisorAndrew E. Lange
Academic work
InstitutionsUniversity of Pennsylvania

Mark Joseph Devlin is an American astrophysicist and cosmologist. He is the Reese W. Flower Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Pennsylvania.

Early life and education

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Devlin was born and raised in New Brunswick, New Jersey[1] by parents Thomas Devlin and Nancy Sherry.[2] His father was a particle physics professor at Rutgers University.[3] He also grew up alongside his brother Paul, who later became an filmmaker.[4][5]

Devlin completed his Bachelor of Science in physics and mathematics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison (UW–Madison)[6] under the direction of Dan McCammon.[7][8] In 2015, Devlin received the UW-Madison Physics Department Distinguished Alumni Award.[7] Following his undergraduate degree, Devlin earned his Master of Science and PhD from the University of California, Berkeley[6] under the direction of Andrew E. Lange.[9]

Career

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Following his PhD, Devlin worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Princeton University from 1994 to 1995.[10] He joined the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Physics and Astronomy in 1996 as an assistant professor.[11] Upon joining the faculty, Devlin converted the balloon telescope he made at Princeton into a ground-based telescope for research in the high altitude plains of Chile.[1] Following his promotion to associate professor in 2000,[11] Devlin was also awarded a Sloan Research Fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The purpose of the fellowship was to provide support and recognition to early-career scientists and scholars.[12] During this time, he also served as a lead researcher in a multi-university project to develop and launch the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST). The telescope was created to allow researchers to observe star and galaxy wavelengths that were invisible to the naked eye.[13][14][15] Despite numerous delays, BLAST launched its first test flight in September 2003 and flew for over 25 hours across New Mexico.[16] In the same year, Devlin was appointed to a Class of 1965 Term Professorship in the School of Arts and Sciences.[11]

In June 2006, Devlin oversaw the launch of BLAST from Sweden to Victoria Island in the Arctic Archipelago. During its four-day journey, BLAST collected images of 16 different objects in the Milky Way.[17] Due to the remote nature of its landing, the research team required at least 10 helicopter trips to retrieve the balloon and equipment.[18] When Devlin and his research team attempted a launch the following year from Antarctica, BLAST crashed into the ice during a failed landing.[19] While a hard drive was salvaged by a rescue team, it could not be used, and 160GB of binary files were lost.[20] Both of these launches were documented by Devlin's brother Paul, who then compiled his footage into a feature-length documentary called BLAST!.[21][22] Devlin and his research team combined BLAST's survey measurements at wavelengths below 1 millimeter with data from the Spitzer Space Telescope to confirm that all cosmic infrared background comes from individual distant galaxies.[23][24] In May 2007, Devlin was appointed the Reese W. Flower Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics.[25]

In 2016, Devlin began co-leading a project to establish a new astronomy facility in the Atacama Desert of Chile.[26][27] Through the use of the Atacama Cosmology Telescope, Devlin's research team and colleagues at Princeton University were able to collect and release precise images of the universe at about 380,000 years old.[28][29] In April 2025, Devlin was named a Member of the National Academy of Sciences for his work in experimental cosmology.[30]

References

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  1. ^ a b Wolverton, Mark (2008). "The Guy Who Builds Stuff: Mark Devlin's Photo Album of the History of the Universe" (PDF). University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  2. ^ Miles, Gary (October 27, 2022). "Thomas J. Devlin, pioneering particle physicist and popular Rutgers professor emeritus, has died at 87". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  3. ^ "Q&A with Mark Devlin". Penn Today. March 13, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  4. ^ "View from Above: BLAST! the movie". NASA. December 20, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  5. ^ "Paul Devlin: Influencing A Generation Of Future Scientists". Funderstanding. May 7, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Mark Devlin". University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  7. ^ a b "The Wisconsin Physicist" (PDF). University of Wisconsin–Madison. 2015. p. 4. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  8. ^ "UW–Madison physicists join Simons Observatory". University of Wisconsin-Madison - Department of Physics. March 13, 2014. Archived from the original on April 16, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  9. ^ Overbye, Dennis (January 27, 2010). "Andrew Lange, Scholar of the Cosmos, Dies at 52". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 6, 2024. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
  10. ^ Fuller-Wright, Liz (May 18, 2023). "Jo Dunkley, Suzanne Staggs and colleagues awarded $53M to upgrade prominent observatory". Princeton University. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  11. ^ a b c "Class of 1965 Term Chairs: Dr. Devlin and Dr. Thompson-Schill". University of Pennsylvania Almanac. October 14, 2003. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  12. ^ "2000 Annual Report: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation" (PDF). Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. 2000. p. 7. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  13. ^ Pascale, Ethan (2008). "The Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope: BLAST". The Astrophysical Journal. 681. arXiv:0711.3465. doi:10.1086/588541. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  14. ^ Daley, Brooke (November 21, 2002). "Look out, Hubble: Penn scope to lift off". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  15. ^ Wilner, Elaine (November 14, 2002). "Beyond the Big Bang". Penn Today. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  16. ^ "BLAST (Balloon-borne Large-Aperture Sub-millimeter Telescope) Test Flight". Stratocat. September 28, 2003. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  17. ^ "A Balloon With a View". The Pennsylvania Gazette. September 1, 2005. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  18. ^ "Telescope recovery from tundra complete". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. June 21, 2005. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  19. ^ Muir, Hazel; Simonite, Tom (December 18, 2007). "The Doh! of technology". New Scientist. Archived from the original on March 6, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  20. ^ "Six Years of Research Almost Lost to Antarctica's Harsh Tundra". DriveSavers. Archived from the original on September 16, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  21. ^ "View from Above: BLAST! the movie". NASA. December 20, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  22. ^ "Paul Devlin: Influencing A Generation Of Future Scientists". Funderstanding. May 7, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  23. ^ "Starlight, starbright". The Antarctic Sun. April 10, 2009. Archived from the original on August 20, 2024. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  24. ^ Devlin, Mark J.; Ade, Peter A. R. (April 9, 2009). "Over half of the far-infrared background light comes from galaxies at z ≥ 1.2". Nature. 458: 737–739. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  25. ^ "Science Professors to Four Chairs". University of Pennsylvania Almanac. May 1, 2007. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  26. ^ "Penn Joins in $40 Million Grant to Establish Simons Observatory". Penn Today. May 12, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  27. ^ "Mark Devlin and Colleagues Awarded NSF Grant to Upgrade Prominent Observatory". May 9, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  28. ^ Shahed, Sarah (February 4, 2025). "Penn collaboration with Atacama Cosmology Telescope releases images of universe's early years". The Daily Pennsylvanian. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  29. ^ "Simons Observatory Large Aperture Telescope Achieves First Light Milestone". Simons Foundation. March 17, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  30. ^ "Four from Penn elected to the National Academy of Sciences". Penn Today. April 30, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
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