Roger A. Chevalier
Roger Chevalier is the W. H. Vanderbilt Professor of Astronomy at the University of Virginia. After obtaining his Ph.D from Princeton University in 1973, he joined the scientific staff of Kitt Peak National Observatory in Tucson, Arizona. He moved to the University of Virginia in 1979, where his research has centered on theoretical studies of rapidly expanding astronomical sources, including supernovae, supernova remnants, gamma-ray bursts, pulsar wind nebulae, and galactic superwinds.
Chevalier has carried out modeling of supernova light curves, the effect of mass loss on a supernova, fallback of supernova gas to a central neutron star, the evolution of the bubble from a rotating neutron star through several stages of evolution, and the interaction of a supernova with circumstellar gas. The research involves making predictions for multiwavelength observations. His work on collisionless shocks explained the mysterious hydrogen emission from fast shock waves. On a larger scale, his research provided an analytical solution for galactic superwinds from thermalized supernova energy.
He has served on and led a number of committee of the American Astronomical Society; Associated Universities for Research in Astronomy; the National Science Foundation; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; and the National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council. His honors include the Dannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics and being included in the American Astronomical Society's inaugural group of Legacy Fellows.