CU Boulder Physics

Congratulations to CU Boulder’s Margaret Murnane – named an honorary member of Optica! 🎉

🏆 The designation is the most distinguished member category bestowed by Optica.

🤩 Since 1916, only 63 individuals have been named honorary members.

Murnane, a distinguished professor of physics and electrical engineering and fellow of JILA, was recognized for her pioneering advances in ultrafast laser technology and extreme ultraviolet science, as well as sustained mentorship and leadership to the optics community.

Congratulations, Professor Murnane! 👏

Read more: https://www.colorado.edu/physics/2026/06/01/margaret-murnane-named-opticas-newest-honorary-member

Image credit: Boulder Daily Camera

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Latest proposal from Jun Ye and colleagues including physics graduate students Zoey Hu and Ben Hunt, and postdoctoral associate Dahyeon Lee ⬇️

They rank among the darkest and coldest places in the solar system: thousands of lunar craters, most of them at the moon’s south pole, never receive direct sunlight and lie in permanent shadow. That’s exactly why NIST physicist Jun Ye and his colleagues suggest these craters are the perfect place to build a critical component for an ultra-stable laser.

This laser could lay the foundation for a GPS-like signal for spacecraft to navigate the moon’s surface, highly precise measurements of the distance between satellites, and the first atomic timekeeping signal on another celestial body.

🔗 https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2026/05/shooting-moon-ultrastable-lasers-dark-craters-could-enable-lunar-navigation