Curriculum Vitae
Research Interests
Extragalactic astronomy, dark matter, galaxy masses, dark energy, galaxy mergers, gravity, relativity, web applications, cosmological parameters, general astronomy, physics, optics, observational astronomy, theoretical astronomy, instrumentation
Education
University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu HI, USA
- M.S./Ph.D. Astronomy, Expected Sometime
University of Maryland, College Park, MD USA
- B.S. Physical Sciences & Physics, May 2009
- Concentrations in Astronomy, Meteorology, & Math
- Professional Physics Track
Awards and Honors
- Henry E. Fleming Scholarship, 2006 - 2009
- President's Scholarship, 2005 - 2009
- Ray Hoyt Scholarship, 2005 - 2009
- Wal-Mart Scholarship, 2005
Teaching Experience
Instructor
- CPSP229D - Web Design and Internet Applications, UMD, August 2007 - May 2009
- Astronomy & Physics Tutor
Teaching Assistant
- ASTR120 - Introduction to Astronomy (Majors), UMD, August 2008 - May 2009
- ASTR100 - Introduction to Astronomy (Non-Majors), UMD, August 2007 - May 2008
- CPSP229D - Web Design and Internet Applications, UMD, August 2006 - May 2007
Research Experience
Research Assistant, August 2006 - Present
- Mentor: Dr. Stacy McGaugh
- Topic: Rotation Curves, Galaxy Structure, & Dark Matter Characteristics of Galaxies
Research Assistant, Summer 2007
- Mentor: Dr. Rosemary Killen
- Topic: The Exosphere of Mercury & the NASA Messenger Mission
NOAO REU Student, Summer 2008 - Present
- Mentor: Dr. Jennifer Lotz
- Topic: Quantifying the Morphology and Photometry of Tidal Tails from Galaxy Mergers
Computer Experiece
Knowledge of HTML, XHTML, JavaScript, CSS, PHP, Perl, MySQL, C, Python, IDL, GIPSY, IRAF, GNUPLOT, SM, R, Matlab, Mathematica, LaTeX, Word Processing/Presentation Software
Knowledge of MS Windows, Linux/UNIX, & Mac Operating Systems
Observing Experience
Kitt Peak National Observatory, NOAO, 31 Total Nights
- Mayall 4m Telescope, 17 Nights, Instruments: RC Spectrograph, NEWFIRM
- 2.1m Telescope, 10 Nights, Instruments: SQIID, GoldCam, Direct CCD
- WIYN 3.5m Telescope, 1 Night, Instrument: SparsePak
- WIYN 0.9m Telescope, 2 Nights, Instrument: MOSAIC
- 0.9m Coude Feed Telescope and Spectrograph, 1 Night
Talks
Science Talks
- Investigating Galaxy Mergers with IGNITE, NOAO REU Presentation, 2008 August 14
Public Talks
- Dark Matter in Spiral/Disk Galaxies: Discovery and Current Observations, University of Maryland Open House Guest Lecture, 2008 January 20
Printed Presentations
- Mass Modeling and Rotation Curves of Medium to High Surface Brightness Galaxies: Determining Maximum Disk and Mass to Light Ratios, Poster, Presented at Galaxy Masses 09 Workshop, 2009 June 15, Zagursky, M.J., McGaugh, S.S., Schombert, J. (pdf - 28.3MB)
- Investigating Galaxy Merger Signatures with IGNITE, Poster, Presented at AAS Winter Meeting, 2009 January 5, Zagursky, M.J., Lotz, J.M. (pdf - 18.1MB)
- Constraining Maximum Disk Velocities of High-Mass Galaxies, Presented at AAS Winter Meeting, Poster, 2008 January 8, Zagursky, M.J., McGaugh, S.S. (pdf - 24.5MB)
- Surface Photometry and Rotation Curves of Low Surface Brightness Galaxies to Model the Dark Matter Halo, Presented at the University of Maryland Scholars Academic Showcase, Poster, 2007 May 4, Zagursky, M.J., McGaugh, S.S.
Publications
- Mass Modeling and Rotation Curves of Medium to High Surface Brightness Galaxies, Zagursky, M.J., McGaugh, S.S., & Schombert, J., In Draft
- Kinematic and Photometric Evidence for a Bar in NGC 2683, Kuzio de Naray, R., Zagursky, M.J., & McGaugh, S.S., Submitted and Accepted to ApJ (pdf - 0.6MB) [arXiv Link]
Societies and Social Activities
Professional Organizations
- American Astronomical Society (AAS), 2007-Present
Student Organizations
- AstroTerps (President), 2006-Present
- Society of Physics Students, 2007-Present
Public Outreach
The University of Maryland, College Park, MD USA
- University of Maryland Astronomy Open House Volunteer, 2006-Present
- Maryland Day, 2006-Present
- College Park Scholars Service Day Team Leader, 2005-2008
Media Appearances
Television Interview by the American Institute of Physics, "Lunar Eclipses", Produced as a Nationwide News Story, Aired Summer 2007
Special Projects
The Eratosthenes Method of Finding Earth's Circumference, Website and Data Submission Designer, Sponsored by NASA, 2007 June 12