Montclair State Professor Is Changing The Way We See ‘Gravity’

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Thanks to a Simons Fellowship award, an associate professor of physics at Montclair State University will be able to continue his cutting-edge research into one of the primal forces of existence: gravity.

The $108,000 Simons Foundation grant will allow Montclair State University’s Marc Favata to further his research in gravitational-wave astronomy and act as an ambassador to his peers in South Korea, Germany and the California Institute of Technology.

Of the 12 scholars awarded Simons Fellowships for theoretical physics in 2018, Favata is the only honoree from a New Jersey higher education institution.

“I’m very grateful to the Simons Foundation for this award,” Favata said. “This is an incredibly exciting time to be working in gravitational-wave science, and I’m looking forward to learning more about my field by collaborating with colleagues in other states and countries.”

According to Montclair State University, Favata has been part of some of the field’s biggest research breakthroughs over the past two years as a member of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) Scientific Collaboration, including the first-ever detection of gravitational waves produced by the merger of two black holes in 2015.

• See related article: Montclair State Professors, LIGO Make 'Star-Shattering' Discovery (WATCH)
• See related article: Black Holes Collide, MSU Professor Involved In Scientific Breakthrough (LISTEN)

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Photo: Montclair State University

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