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Penn fourth-year Yash Rajpal named 2026-27 Luce Scholar
Yash Rajpal

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Penn fourth-year Yash Rajpal named 2026-27 Luce Scholar

Yash Rajpal, a University of Pennsylvania fourth-year student in the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering & Applied Science, is one of 16 recipients selected by the Henry Luce Foundation to be a 2026-27 Luce Scholar.

1 min. read

Mapping the expanding cosmos: Dark Energy Survey unveils clearest picture yet
Terrestrial telescope in Chile under a starlit sky.

The Dark Energy Survey used a 570-megapixel camera mounted on the 4-metre Victor M. Blanco Telescope in Chile to image 5,000 square degrees of southern sky. The survey discovered more than 1,000 supernovae and mapped millions of galaxies to help astronomers better understand the accelerating expansion of our universe.

(Image: Courtesy of Dark Energy Survey Collaborative)

Mapping the expanding cosmos: Dark Energy Survey unveils clearest picture yet

The Dark Energy Survey collaborative, including Penn researchers, recently released an analysis that gives the clearest picture yet of how dark energy is driving the universe’s expansion and how matter—including galaxies and groups of galaxies—has been organized over cosmic time.

3 min. read

Raindrop-formed ‘sandballs’ that erode hillsides tenfold
High-speed images of raindrops rolling on a sandy slope, forming peanut-shaped sandballs (top) and donut-shaped sandballs with hollow centers (bottom).

High-speed laboratory images capture two distinct “sandball” shapes formed when raindrops strike dry, sloped sand and roll downhill. (Top) Peanut-shaped sandballs, where grains coat the surface of a liquid core. (Bottom) Donut-shaped sandballs, which densify into rigid, wheel-like structures with a hollow center, enabling far more efficient sediment transport than splash erosion alone.

(Image: Daisuke Noto)

Raindrop-formed ‘sandballs’ that erode hillsides tenfold

Penn geophysicists and colleagues have uncovered Earth-sculpting processes that result from the formation of snowball-like aggregates they call “sandballs.” Their findings provide fundamental insights into erosion and will broaden scientific understandings of landscape change, soil loss, and agriculture.

3 min. read

Physics of foam strangely resembles AI training
Six separate piles of foam.

Image: Dowprasook Deenu via Getty Images

Physics of foam strangely resembles AI training

Research by Penn Engineers reveals that as foams flow ceaselessly inside while holding their external shape, and this internal motion resembles the process of deep learning, the method typically used to train modern AI systems.

Ian Scheffler

2 min. read

Why are icy surfaces slippery?
An icy bench in a city.

Despite the commonality of water and ice, says Penn physicist Robert Carpick, their physical properties are remarkably unique.

(Image: mustafahacalaki via Getty Images)

Why are icy surfaces slippery?

Winter Storm Fern brought icy and snowy conditions to the Northeast and other parts of the country over the weekend. Penn Today asks physicist Robert Carpick about the unique properties of ice, the science of curling, and how close we are to ‘nonslip’ ice. 

5 min. read

One School, many schools of thought
Mark Trodden.

School of Arts & Sciences dean Mark Trodden joins faculty in discussion for Omnia’s latest podcast series.

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One School, many schools of thought

A special edition of the Penn Arts & Sciences “Ampersand” podcast features Dean Mark Trodden in conversation with SAS faculty from different disciplines.

Alex Schein

2 min. read

A new way to guide light
Researchers stand and point at a white board littered with equations.

Bo Zhen (right) and postdoctoral researcher Li He developed a system for guiding light through tiny crystals in ways that allow it to navigate undeterred by bumps and defects. Their work could lead to sturdier lasers, faster data links, and light-based chips that don’t get tripped up by imperfections.

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A new way to guide light

Penn researchers developed a system that allows light to be guided through a tiny crystal, undeterred by bumps, bends, and back-reflections. Their findings pave the way for robust, controllable light-based chips, smarter routing for data links, and more stable lasers.

3 min. read

Charles Kane to receive Lorentz Medal
Charles Kane

Charles Kane, Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Physics at Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences.

(Image: Brooke Sietinsons)

Charles Kane to receive Lorentz Medal

Awarded every four years by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, the medal honors Kane’s pioneering research on topological insulators.

3 min. read