Bing Zhang

Distinguished Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Director, Nevada Center for Astrophysics
Expertise: Astrophysics, Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs), Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs), Electromagnetic Radiation, Black Holes (Accretion Disks), Neutron Stars, Neutrinos, Gravitational Waves

Biography

Bing Zhang is a distinguished professor in UNLV’s department of physics and astronomy who researches high-energy astrophysics, which explores the energy emitted by powerful stellar masses, like black holes and neutron stars. Zhang is especially knowledgeable about fast radio bursts (FRBs) and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), the most luminous explosions in the universe.

Zhang’s main research interests include transient astrophysics, jet and accretion physics, multi-wavelength astrophysics, pulsars, gravitational waves, X-rays to low frequency radio waves, and other general topics relating to astrophysics. His research papers have been cited over 35,000 times by peers in his field, and his work has been recognized by NASA.

A frequent media source to top media outlets like CNN and Vice, Zhang is the author of The Physics of Gamma-Ray Bursts, a textbook that is taught today in graduate classes for students studying gamma-ray bursts and is frequently referenced by fellow researchers.

Prior to joining UNLV in 2004, Zhang did postdoctoral fellowships at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and Pennsylvania State University.  

Education

  • Ph.D., Astrophysics, Peking University
  • M.S., Astrophysics, Peking University
  • B.S., Geophysics, Peking University

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Bing Zhang In The News

SciTechDaily
Scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ National Astronomical Observatories (NAOC), along with their international partners, used the Five-hundred-meter Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) to identify a binary pulsar system with an orbital period of 53 minutes. This newly discovered system, known as PSR J1953+1844 or M71E, bridges a previously existing gap in our understanding of the evolutionary stages of spider pulsar systems.
Las Vegas Weekly
A lot of the time, when someone mentions the University of Nevada Las Vegas, they’re speaking of its renowned School of Hospitality, its fast-growing medical school or its Jerry Tarkanian-era men’s basketball teams. But UNLV is also one of the nation’s top research universities, awarded an R1 classification (“very high research activity”) from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Join the Weekly as we peek into the laboratories where world-changing scientific research is ongoing.
Space Daily
The quest for the true value of the Hubble constant (H0) tension which gives a measure of the current expansion of the Universe is still on. The fervent debate today is about the discrepancy between the H0 values obtained from type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) and from the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (CMB), a radiation emitted from the early Universe close to its origin.
National Geographic
A once-in-a-civilization burst of gamma rays set off an observing spree by more than 160 telescopes. It’s forcing scientists to revisit long-held theories — and it’s not done yet.

Articles Featuring Bing Zhang

Students at Pida Plaza on the first day of classes (Josh Hawkins, UNLV).
Campus News | September 1, 2023

A roundup of prominent news stories highlighting university pride, research, and community collaboration.

Graduation surprise
Campus News | August 1, 2023

News stories from the summer featuring UNLV students and faculty.

China's FAST radio telescope
Research | July 28, 2023

International team reports on a radio pulsar phase of a Galactic magnetar that emitted a fast radio burst in 2020; observations suggest unique origins for “bursts” and “pulses," which adds to FRB formation theory.
 

illustration of a microquasar in outer space
Research | July 26, 2023

An international team of scientists reports in Nature the first detection of a quasi-periodic oscillation signal in the radio band from a Galactic black hole system.