Brenna Mockler

Research Interests:

High-energy transients, tidal disruption events, supermassive black holes, and stars.

Career History

• B.A. Physics and College Scholar, Cornell University, 2016
• M.Sc., Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, 2018
• Ph.D, Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of California, Santa Cruz, 2022
• UCLA Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Fellow, 2022
• Carnegie Theoretical Astrophysics Center Postdoctoral Research Fellow, 2023-Present
• Assistant Professor of Physics & Astronomy, University of California, Davis, 2025-Present

Honors

• HEAD Dissertation Prize Honorable Mention, 2023
• AAUW American Dissertation Fellowship, 2021-2022
• UC Santa Cruz President’s Dissertation Year Fellowship, 2021-2022
• Denice Denton Excellence in Research Award, 2021
• NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Honorable Mention, 2018
• UC Santa Cruz Astronomy Award for Excellence in Mentoring, 2017-2018
• UC Santa Cruz Chancellor’s Fellowship, 2016 - 2017
• UC Santa Cruz Regents’ Fellowship, 2016 - 2017
• Member of Mortar Board Der Hexenkreis Senior Honor Society, 2016-Present