UMD Research

Did you catch our University of Maryland Research Brief on Friday? 👀

Check out the newest installment: The Center of the Internet, 'Cybersickness', and More!

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A telescope co-developed by a @UMDscience astronomer is moving from planning to building and executing the mission of visualizing cataclysmic deep-space explosions.

@NASA advanced the Ultraviolet Explorer (UVEX) to final design and fabrication, and has scheduled it to launch by January 2031. The $590 million multi-institutional mission led by Caltech proposes to observe ultraviolet radiation from the entire sky with unprecedented sensitivity. It will also zoom in on kilonovae, which follow the collision of two neutron stars, and supernovae, which occur when massive stars explode. Astronomy Associate Professor Suvi Gezari is the mission’s dynamic universe lead, spearheading science on these transient phenomena.

“It’s really exciting for us to advance to the next stage because we've put a lot of work into this initial mission-planning phase,” Gezari said. “This new ultraviolet window into the universe will yield many discoveries and will be a huge advance in our field, especially for studying energetic explosions in the universe.”

today.umd.edu/590m-nasa-tele…

#AMA happening tomorrow!

A thin layer of microorganisms can create big problems for a data center — or it can help remove pollutants from water. Birthe Kjellerup, a University of Maryland Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, studies how to control the damage these microorganisms cause and put their capabilities to work.

Kjellerup’s research focuses on biofilms: communities of bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms that grow on surfaces in both natural environments and engineered systems.

“We’re trying to solve problems that bacteria and biofilms cause,” said Kjellerup, co-director of the UMD Center of Excellence in Microbiome Sciences. “Then we are also using these same biofilms to solve problems.”

Check it out: today.umd.edu/researcher-put…

A flute that feels like raindrops fluttering across the skin. A violin that registers as a looping sensation. Drums that arrive as an insistent, rhythmic pulse.

That’s how Jill Marie Bradbury, a Deaf scholar and director of the University of Maryland’s School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies (TDPS), describes what live music could feel like for Deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences. Now, a $150,000 grant from the Artists Make Technology Lab (AMT Lab), an initiative supporting innovation in the performing arts, will help her and an interdisciplinary UMD team make that a reality.

The team will develop wearable technology and software that use haptic feedback — physical sensations such as vibrations — to translate musical elements into patterns audiences can feel on their bodies. Existing wearable devices largely use vibrations to convey changes in pitch and volume, but Bradbury’s team wants to create distinct patterns that capture the qualities of different instruments and how they interact. By layering these patterns, the team hopes to convey the texture and complexity of music in an entirely new way.

today.umd.edu/umd-team-aims-…