Sandra Faber

Sandra Faber is an eminent American astronomer renowned for her pioneering contributions to our understanding of galaxy formation and cosmology. A professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz and astronomer at Lick Observatory, she played a leading role in the design of key instruments for the Hubble Space Telescope. Her work, including the co-discovery of the Faber–Jackson relation and foundational theories on cold dark matter, has profoundly shaped modern astrophysics.

Early life and education

Sandra Moore Faber was born in Boston and developed an early interest in science, influenced by the launch of Sputnik 1. She pursued her undergraduate studies in physics at Swarthmore College, graduating with high honors in 1966. She then earned her Ph.D. in astronomy from Harvard University in 1972 under the guidance of renowned spectroscopist Ira S. Bowen. Her doctoral thesis involved the study of stellar populations and the chemical abundance of elliptical galaxies, laying the groundwork for her future research.

Career and research

Upon completing her doctorate, Faber joined the faculty at the University of California, Santa Cruz and the staff of Lick Observatory, where she has remained for her entire career. In 1976, in collaboration with Robert Jackson, she discovered the Faber–Jackson relation, a fundamental correlation between the luminosity and the velocity dispersion of elliptical galaxies that serves as a crucial tool for measuring cosmic distances. During the 1980s, she was part of the team, alongside George Blumenthal and Joel Primack, that developed the influential cold dark matter theory of galaxy formation. Faber was a principal investigator for the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field and Planetary Camera and played a key role in the NASA team that diagnosed and helped plan the repair mission for the telescope's flawed primary mirror. She later led the CANDELS survey, one of the largest projects in the history of the Hubble Space Telescope, and has been deeply involved with the W. M. Keck Observatory.

Awards and honors

Faber's groundbreaking research has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards. She received the Dannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics in 1985 and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1985 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1989. In 2012, she was awarded the Bruce Medal, one of astronomy's highest honors. President Barack Obama presented her with the National Medal of Science in 2013. She is also a recipient of the Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science and, in 2017, shared the Gruber Prize in Cosmology with her long-time collaborator Joel Primack. In 2020, she was elected a foreign member of the Royal Society.

Personal life

Sandra Faber is married to astronomer Andrew Faber, and they have two children. An advocate for women in science, she has mentored many students and early-career astronomers throughout her tenure at University of California, Santa Cruz. She is also known for her commitment to public outreach, frequently giving lectures to explain complex cosmological concepts to general audiences.

Selected publications

* Faber, S.M., & Jackson, R.E. (1976). "Velocity dispersions and mass-to-light ratios for elliptical galaxies." *The Astrophysical Journal*. * Blumenthal, G.R., Faber, S.M., Primack, J.R., & Rees, M.J. (1984). "Formation of galaxies and large-scale structure with cold dark matter." *Nature*. * Faber, S.M., et al. (1997). "The Centers of Early-Type Galaxies with HST. IV. Central Parameter Relations." *The Astronomical Journal*. * Grogin, N.A., et al. (CANDELS team) (2011). "CANDELS: The Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey." *The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series*.

Category:American astronomers Category:University of California, Santa Cruz faculty Category:National Medal of Science laureates