Early years
López was born in Illinois to Puerto Rican parents. His father was a United States Army officer and surgeon and his mother an elementary school teacher. When he was a child his father gave him a telescope as a birthday present, and the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969 inspired him to seek an education in the field of Space Physics.Ramón López PDFEducation
López entered the University of Illinois where in 1976, and earned a B.A. in Physics in 1980. As a student he worked in the Physics Department preparing demonstrations and also wrote articles for the institution's newspaper. He was awarded a National Science Foundation minority graduate fellowship which he used to attend Rice University in Houston as a student in the Department of Space Physics and Astronomy. In 1984 he earned his Master's and in 1986 a Ph.D. inAcademic career
In 1992, López went to work for the University of Maryland at College Park and served in the following positions: Research Associate Department of Astronomy (92-93), Assistant Director for Research East-West Space Science Center (93-94) and Associate Research Scientist Department of Astronomy (93-99). He worked very closely with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland to help implement a hands-on science program in elementary and middle grades. López served as Director of Education and Outreach Programs of The American Physical Society from 1993–1999 and became the Chair of the Department of Physics at the University of Texas at El Paso.National Society of Hispanic PhysicistsSpace Research
López's research focuses on solar wind-magnetosphere coupling, magnetospheric storms and substorms, and space weather prediction. He has worked extensively on magnetospheric substorms, which are the episodic release of energy extracted from the solar wind and stored in the geomagnetic tail. His research studied the magnetic properties of the sun and solar wind and how these effect the magnetosphere of earth. He leads a research group that is working in both space physics and science education. In 2002 López and Michael Carolwicz co-authored a popular book on space weather titled ''Storms from the Sun: The Emerging Science of Space Weather'' with Michael Carolwicz.Scientific publications
Among the published works in which López has participated are the following: *''Predicting Magnetopause Crossings at Geosynchronous Orbit During the Halloween Storms,'' Space Weather, 5, S01005, ; 2007; R. E. López, S. Hernandez, M. Wiltberger, C.-L. Huang, E. L. Kepko, H. Spence, C. C. Goodrich, and J. G. Lyon. *''Using Space Physics in Undergraduate Electromagnetism Courses;'' 2007; López, R. E. *''Active Learning for Advanced Students: The Center for Integrated Space Weather Modeling Graduate Summer School;'' 2007; López, R. E. and N. A. Gross; . *''Field-Aligned Currents in the Polar Cap During Saturation of the Polar Cap Potential,'' J. Atmos. Sol. Terr. Phys.; R. E. López, S. Hernandez, K. Hallman, R. Valenzuela, J. Seiler, P. Anderson, and M. Hairston (2007). *''The role of magnetosheath force balance in regulating the dayside reconnection potential,'' J. Geophys. Res., 115, A12216, ; 2007; R. E. López, R. Bruntz, E. J. Mitchell, M. Wiltberger, J. G. Lyon, and V. G. Merkin (2010). *''The Impact of Stereo Display on Student Understanding of Phases of the Moon,'' Astronomy Education Review, 9, 010105, ; 2007; X. Cid and R. E. López (2010).Written work
''Storms from the Sun: The Emerging Science of Space Weather;'' by Michael J. Carlowicz and Ramón E. López; . Available as a free PDF download at thProfessional affiliations and memberships
López is a member of the following:. *American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) *American Geophysical Union (AGU) *American Physical Society (APS) *National Society of Hispanic Physicists (NSHP) *Soc. for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science ( SACNAS)Currently
López is currently a Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Texas at ArlingtoSee also
* List of Puerto Ricans *References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez, Ramon E. 1959 births Puerto Rican scientists Puerto Rican writers Living people Rice University alumni