David Alexander
· Professor, Physics and Astronomy Director, Rice Space Institute Department OmbudspersonRice University · Sociology
Active 1994–2025
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About
David Alexander is a Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Rice University, where he also serves as the Director of the Rice Space Institute and the Department Ombudsperson. His main area of interest is the study of the dynamic solar corona through the analysis and theoretical interpretation of thermal and non-thermal radiation. His primary contributions have been in the field of solar flare and coronal mass ejection (CME) physics, where he has developed theoretical models for the production of gamma-rays, hard X-rays, and soft X-ray line broadening. He is involved in projects aimed at understanding the initiation and evolution of solar flares and CMEs by exploring particle production in relation to magnetic topology, helicity injection, and filament eruptions. Currently, he leads the NSF-funded INSPIRE project to study magnetic interactions between stars and planets and is working on devising a novel snapshot hyperspectral imager for Earth remote sensing in collaboration with bioengineering colleagues. Dr. Alexander is also the author of the book "The Sun" (2009) published by Greenwood Press.
Research topics
- Astronomy
- Physics
- Classical mechanics
- Nuclear physics
- Computational physics
- Remote sensing
- Geography
- Astrobiology
- Astrophysics
Selected publications
COMPLEX FLARE DYNAMICS INITIATED BY A FILAMENT–FILAMENT INTERACTION
The Astrophysical Journal · 2015-10-28 · 33 citations
articleOpen accessWe report on an eruption involving a relatively rare filament-filament interaction on 2013 June 21, observed by SDO and STEREO-B. The two filaments were separated in height with a 'double-decker' configuration. The eruption of the lower filament began simultaneously with a descent of the upper filament resulting in a convergence and direct interaction of the two filaments. The interaction was accompanied by the heating of surrounding plasma and an apparent crossing of a loop-like structure throu…
Light-guide snapshot imaging spectrometer for remote sensing applications
Optics Express · 2019-05-20 · 28 citations
articleOpen accessA fiber-based snapshot imaging spectrometer was developed with a maximum of 31853 (~188 x 170) spatial sampling and 61 spectral channels in the 450nm-750nm range. A compact, custom-fabricated fiber bundle was used to sample the object image at the input and create void spaces between rows at the output for dispersion. The bundle was built using multicore 6x6 fiber block ribbons. To avoid overlap between the cores in the direction of dispersion, we selected a subset of cores using two alternative…
Compact snapshot image mapping spectrometer for unmanned aerial vehicle hyperspectral imaging
Journal of Applied Remote Sensing · 2018-12-19 · 15 citations
articleDue to the surge in the development of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and small spacecraft (CubeSats and SmallSats) in recent years, there has been a push to develop miniaturized instrumentation to be incorporated on such platforms. A compact hyperspectral imager integrated with these vehicles provides a cost-effective platform for a range of environmental sensing applications that include the monitoring of vegetation, urban development, and lightning. We present the snapshot hyperspectral imag…
Star-exoplanet interactions: A growing interdisciplinary field in heliophysics
Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences · 2023 · 10 citations
Traditionally, heliophysics is characterized as the study of the near-Earth space environment, where plasmas and neutral gases originating from the Earth, the Sun, and other solar system bodies interact in ways that are detectable only through in-situ or close-range (usually within ∼10 AU) remote sensing. As a result, heliophysics has data from the space environment around a handful of solar system objects, in particular the Sun and Earth. Comparatively, astrophysics has data from an extensive a…
The Astrophysical Journal · 2021 · 10 citations
Abstract We present calculations of auroral radio emission for an Earth-like planet produced by field-aligned current (FAC) driven electron acceleration using a coupled global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) and inner magnetosphere model, extending the capabilities of previous works which focus solely on the direct transmission of magnetic energy between the stellar wind and ionosphere. Magnetized exoplanets are expected to produce radio emission via interaction between the host star’s stellar wind an…
Recent grants
Frequent coauthors
- 32 shared
A Kuznetsov
Kuzbass State Technical University
- 16 shared
Jean‐Marie Lauenstein
Goddard Space Flight Center
- 16 shared
Heather Quinn
Los Alamos National Laboratory
- 16 shared
Leon ft
Ball (France)
- 16 shared
A. Keating
- 16 shared
Jeffrey W. Tripp
Optech (Canada)
- 16 shared
Richard Horton
Lancet Laboratories
- 16 shared
David Llulluy Nuñez
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