Astronomy and Planetary Science

The universe is awaiting your exploration

The Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science at Northern Arizona University offers a bachelor’s degree and a doctoral degree.

The department has a small, family feeling. At NAU, your instructors will know you by name; they are easily accessible, and they genuinely care about student success. Lecture courses are taught almost exclusively by full-time faculty. Both undergraduate and graduate students are routinely and deeply involved in faculty research.

The sense of community I felt while at NAU is something I very much miss.

– recent BS graduate who now has a PhD

Our Classroom is the Cosmos!
Join us: we’re looking for a few good students!

NAU aims to be the nation’s preeminent engine of opportunity, vehicle of economic mobility, and driver of social impact by delivering equitable postsecondary value in Arizona and beyond.

Northern Arizona University sits at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, on homelands sacred to Native Americans throughout the region.
We honor their past, present, and future generations, who have lived here for millennia and will forever call this place home.