Before leading some of NASA’s most ambitious missions, Jim Green found his trajectory at the University of Iowa — where a series of “gravity assists” set him on a path to the stars.

The Iowa Spaceflight Lab brings the full mission development process under one roof, from concept and design to testing, integration, and delivery, expanding the Department of Physics and Astronomy’s capabilities in spacecraft instrumentation. Housed in Van Allen Hall, the lab enables researchers to design, build, and test technologies for upcoming missions in a single, integrated space, strengthening Iowa’s leadership in space exploration.

Several faculty and staff from the department were recognized by the graduating class of 2026 for making a meaningful difference in students experiences at the University of Iowa. Among them were: Ugur Akgun; Casey DeRoo; Hai Fu; Jasper Halekas; Allison Jaynes; Kenneth Johnson: Jane Nachtman.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy celebrated the accomplishments of students, faculty, and staff during the 2026 Awards Colloquium on April 28.

Following the success of Artemis II, Allison Jaynes and Casey DeRoo of the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences are contributing to the next phase of lunar exploration through instrument development and space environment research. Their advancing work could support future missions, including new approaches to studying space and conducting astronomy from the moon.

Decades of weird experimental results appeared to support the existence of the sterile neutrino, a hypothetical particle that would solve multiple mysteries. But recent experiments have killed hope of finding these phantoms, leaving physicists to wonder what might explain their anomalies. “It’s on us to learn how to get creative,” said Matheus Hostert, a physicist at the University of Iowa. “This is a very exciting time for the field, especially for theorists like myself who get to ask hard questions about all this data.”