Daniel M. Scolnic

Associate Professor of Physics

Use observational tools to measure the expansion history of the universe.  Trying to answer big questions like 'what is dark energy?'.

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Associate Professor of Physics

Contact Information

  • Office Location: 120 Science Drive, Box 90305, Durham, NC 27708
  • Email Address: daniel.scolnic@duke.edu
  • Websites:

Education

  • B.S. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007
  • Ph.D. Johns Hopkins University, 2013

Research Interests

Cosmology, Supernova.

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

  • Defense Science Study Group (DSSG). Institute for Defense Analysis. 2023
  • Clarivate Most Highly Cited Scientists. Clarivate. 2023
  • Fred Kavli Plenary Lectureship. American Astronomical Society. 2023
  • Sloan Research Fellowship-Physics. Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. 2022
  • Department of Energy Early Career Award. Department of Energy. 2021
  • Packard Fellowship. The David and Lucille Packard Foundation. 2019

Courses Taught

  • PHYSICS 791: Special Readings
  • PHYSICS 556: Stellar Astrophysics
  • PHYSICS 495: Thesis Independent Study
  • PHYSICS 493: Research Independent Study
  • PHYSICS 151L9D: Introductory Mechanics (Discussion Component)
  • PHYSICS 142L9D: General Physics II (Discussion)
  • PHYSICS 134: Introduction to Astronomy
  • HOUSECS 59: House Course

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Dixon, M., J. Mould, C. Lidman, E. N. Taylor, C. Flynn, A. R. Duffy, L. Galbany, et al. “Calibrating the absolute magnitude of type Ia supernovae in nearby galaxies using [O ii] and implications for H0.” Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 538, no. 2 (April 1, 2025): 782–96. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staf266.
  • Toy, M., P. Wiseman, M. Sullivan, D. Scolnic, M. Vincenzi, D. Brout, T. M. Davis, et al. “Reduction of the type Ia supernova host galaxy step in the outer regions of galaxies.” Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 538, no. 1 (March 1, 2025): 181–97. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staf248.
  • Fernandes, Maryann Benny, Daniel Scolnic, Erik Peterson, Chengxing Zhai, Tyler Linder, Maria Acevedo, and Daniel Reichart. “Measuring the Distances to Asteroids from One Observatory in One Night with Upcoming All-Sky Telescopes.” Qeios Ltd, February 19, 2025. https://doi.org/10.32388/g78p0g.
  • Peterson, E. R., B. Carreres, A. Carr, D. Scolnic, A. Bailey, T. M. Davis, D. Brout, et al. “Improving the Determination of Supernova Cosmological Redshifts by Using Galaxy Groups.” Astrophysical Journal 980, no. 1 (February 10, 2025). https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada285.
  • Camilleri, R., T. M. Davis, S. R. Hinton, P. Armstrong, D. Brout, L. Galbany, K. Glazebrook, et al. “The Dark Energy Survey Supernova Program: an updated measurement of the Hubble constant using the inverse distance ladder.” Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 537, no. 2 (February 1, 2025): 1818–25. https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staf122.