Barbara Ryden

Barbara Sue Ryden (born May 2, 1961) is an American astrophysicist who is a Professor of Astronomy at Ohio State University. Her research considers the formation, shape and structure of galaxies. She was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2016.

Early life and education
Ryden studied physics and integrated sciences at Northwestern University. She moved to Princeton University as a doctoral student, where she worked alongside James Gunn. She was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics.

Research and career
Ryden joined the faculty at Ohio State University in 1992. She studies the formation and shapes of galaxies. Her research made use of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and various numerical simulations. She has shown that the galactic disks at the centre of spiral galaxies are more elliptical than circular.

Ryden has written several astronomy textbooks, including Introduction to Cosmology, Interstellar and Intergalactic Medium, and Foundations of Astrophysics.

Awards and honors

 * 1994 National Science Foundation National Young Investigators Award
 * 2006 American Astronomical Society Chambliss Astronomical Writing Award for her book Introduction to cosmology
 * 2016 Elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science