Yancy Shirley

Yancy Shirley

Professor, Astronomy
Astronomer, Steward Observatory

My research focuses on studies of star formation, astrochemistry, and astrobiology using radio and infrared imaging and spectroscopy. I work on a variety of projects studying the incipient phases of low-mass and high-mass star formation, the chemical evolution of those regions (i.e. through molecular deuterium fractionation and the evolution of complex organic molecules), and the connection between dense molecular gas and global star formation rate relationships in galaxies.

Research Areas
Astrobiology
Astrochemistry & Laboratory Astrophysics
Extragalactic Astronomy
Galactic Astronomy
Star Formation & the Interstellar Medium
Terahertz Astronomy
Stars and Stellar Astrophysics