Professor C. Megan Urry elected to National Academy of Sciences

Professor C. Megan Urry has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in recognition of her distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.

She is among 84 new members and 21 foreign associates from 14 countries selected for membership. The new members were announced May 3. Election to membership in the academy is considered one of the highest honors that can be afforded to a U.S. scientist or engineer.

Urry is the Israel Munson Professor of Physics and Astronomy. She is president of the American Astronomical Society, director of the Yale Center for Astronomy & Astrophysics, a former member of the Hubble space telescope faculty, and former chair of the Yale Department of Physics (2007 to 2013).

Urry’s research has focused on supermassive black holes and the interplay between black hole growth and star formation in the evolution of galaxies. She has published more than 250 refereed research articles on black holes and galaxies, and is widely recognized as a national advocate for increasing the number of women and minorities in science.

The NAS is a private, nonprofit institution established under a congressional charter signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863.

This article has been adapted from the Yale University Press Release.