Richard Klein
Encyclopedia
Richard Klein is an Adjunct Professor of Astronomy
at the University of California, Berkeley
and a Scientific Staff Member at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
(LLNL). Klein received his bachelor's degree
in physics
from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
in 1966 and his PhD
in physics
from Brandeis University
in 1973.
Klein has pioneered methods of radiative transfer
and adaptive mesh refinement
applied to computational astrophysics over the last several decades. He played a central role in the development of the radiation-driven implosion model for induced star formation
and in developing the leading theory of stellar wind
s for "hot stars". He has pursued a broad range of problems ranging from star formation to high energy physics, including the interactions of supernova
e shocks with interstellar cloud
s, the formation of low and high mass stars, accretion onto neutron star
s, and Compton-heated winds from accretion disks. He established the Berkeley Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics Group with Christopher McKee
to develop the technique of adaptive mesh refinement
for numerical simulations of astrophysical fluid dynamics. In addition, he has applied these simulations to scaled laboratory astrophysics experiments. He was recognized by the American Physical Society
(APS) in 2003 for his contributions to computational astrophysics and named a Fellow.
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
and a Scientific Staff Member at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , just outside Livermore, California, is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center founded by the University of California in 1952...
(LLNL). Klein received his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
in 1966 and his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
from Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
in 1973.
Klein has pioneered methods of radiative transfer
Radiative transfer
Radiative transfer is the physical phenomenon of energy transfer in the form of electromagnetic radiation. The propagation of radiation through a medium is affected by absorption, emission and scattering processes. The equation of radiative transfer describes these interactions mathematically...
and adaptive mesh refinement
Adaptive mesh refinement
In numerical analysis, adaptive mesh refinement is a method of adaptive meshing. Central to any Eulerian method is the manner in which it discretizes the continuous domain of interest into a grid of many individual elements...
applied to computational astrophysics over the last several decades. He played a central role in the development of the radiation-driven implosion model for induced star formation
Star formation
Star formation is the process by which dense parts of molecular clouds collapse into a ball of plasma to form a star. As a branch of astronomy star formation includes the study of the interstellar medium and giant molecular clouds as precursors to the star formation process and the study of young...
and in developing the leading theory of stellar wind
Stellar wind
A stellar wind is a flow of neutral or charged gas ejected from the upper atmosphere of a star. It is distinguished from the bipolar outflows characteristic of young stars by being less collimated, although stellar winds are not generally spherically symmetric.Different types of stars have...
s for "hot stars". He has pursued a broad range of problems ranging from star formation to high energy physics, including the interactions of supernova
Supernova
A supernova is a stellar explosion that is more energetic than a nova. It is pronounced with the plural supernovae or supernovas. Supernovae are extremely luminous and cause a burst of radiation that often briefly outshines an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several weeks or months...
e shocks with interstellar cloud
Interstellar cloud
Interstellar cloud is the generic name given to an accumulation of gas, plasma and dust in our and other galaxies. Put differently, an interstellar cloud is a denser-than-average region of the interstellar medium. Depending on the density, size and temperature of a given cloud, the hydrogen in it...
s, the formation of low and high mass stars, accretion onto neutron star
Neutron star
A neutron star is a type of stellar remnant that can result from the gravitational collapse of a massive star during a Type II, Type Ib or Type Ic supernova event. Such stars are composed almost entirely of neutrons, which are subatomic particles without electrical charge and with a slightly larger...
s, and Compton-heated winds from accretion disks. He established the Berkeley Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics Group with Christopher McKee
Christopher McKee
Christopher Fulton McKee is an astrophysicist.McKee obtained a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1970 under advisor George B. Field. In 1974, he was appointed Professor of Physics and Astronomy, University of California at Berkeley. He is a member of the National Academy of...
to develop the technique of adaptive mesh refinement
Adaptive mesh refinement
In numerical analysis, adaptive mesh refinement is a method of adaptive meshing. Central to any Eulerian method is the manner in which it discretizes the continuous domain of interest into a grid of many individual elements...
for numerical simulations of astrophysical fluid dynamics. In addition, he has applied these simulations to scaled laboratory astrophysics experiments. He was recognized by the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
(APS) in 2003 for his contributions to computational astrophysics and named a Fellow.