ProfessorJuliet Pickering

Personal Webpage

Research:

Laboratory Astrophysics:

I am an experimental physicist interested in using spectroscopy (the study of light split into its component wavelengths, its spectrum) as a tool in a range of applications. We carry out experiments in our Atomic and Molecular Spectroscopy Laboratory (AMSG) measuring new accurate spectra of atoms and molecules, and the resulting new atomic and molecular data are then used by astronomers around the world to understand stars, Galactic evolution, exoplanet formation, and much more. 
See Web Page for more details and PhD Opportunities with us for October 2026 start:   PhD in  Atomic Physics and Plasma Spectroscopy of Astrophysically Important Elements

Atmospheric Physics:

In our Atmospheric Physics research, campaigns on board aircraft, from 1000 ft to 10 km up in Earth’s atmosphere, with our unique far infra red radiometer instrument (TAFTS) have helped understand the role of water vapour and clouds, particularly cirrus, in the Earth Radiation Balance and climate change.

Short Biography:
I studied Physics at Wadham College (Oxford) and then moved to Imperial College for my PhD which I completed in 1994. Since then I have continued at Imperial College, with brief time away at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, and also with the Atomic Physics group at Lund University. I held a Royal Society University Research Fellowship (1998-2002). I lead the Spectroscopy Laboratory in the Physics Department, Space, Plasma and Climate Physics Community, Imperial College.