Dr. Andrew B. Christensen presents on the aurora at DSU President’s Colleagues meeting

Dixie State University will host Dr. Andrew B. Christensen as he presents “Life’s Journey with the Aurora: Mystery and Science” at the President’s Colleagues of DSU meeting. The meeting will begin at noon on Monday, Nov. 2, in Room 156 of DSU’s Russell C. Taylor Health Science Center, located at 1526 Medical Center Dr. The meeting is free and open to the public.

Christensen will share his personal experiences and research related to the causes of the aurora, a common nighttime optical phenomenon that is visible at higher latitudes in the Northern and Southern hemispheres. Christensen will discuss some of the physical principles at work. Additionally, DSU professor Sam Tobler will help Christensen conduct physics demonstrations, and footage from the launch of a Utah State University rocket from Alaska will be shown.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Utah in 1962 and a master’s in physics from the University of California Berkeley in 1964, Christensen attended the University of Denver where he graduated with a doctorate in physics in 1969. He then went to work at the University of Texas, Dallas. Moving to California in 1979, he ultimately served as the director of the Space Science and Applications Laboratory at the Aerospace Corporation where he helped manage research in support of the Air Force space program. Approximately 80 engineers and scientists representing a broad range of disciplines were involved. Christensen received the distinguished Trustees Award at the Aerospace Corporation in 1994 for his contribution to science.

Christensen is currently on the staff at DSU, serves as the principle investigator for the ultraviolet imager on the NASA TIMED satellite, which has been in orbit since 2001, directs the Department of Defense RAIDS experiment on the NASA International Space Station, consults for the NASA science program, and contributes to various other space science projects.

The President’s Colleagues of DSU, established more than 20 years ago by former DSU President Dr. Douglas Alder, is a group of retired professors and other professionals who live mostly in the St. George and Washington County area. The colleagues will continue to meet from noon to 1 p.m. on the first Monday of each month throughout the academic year to hear presentations from each other and invited guests.