Learn about an astroparticle physicist at Loyola

Dr. Rasha Abbasi joined the LUC Department of Physics in the fall of 2019. She is an astroparticle physicist and uses experimental and computational methods to study cosmic rays and atmospheric electricity. She is a member of the Telescope Array and the IceCube neutrino observatory. Her work with the Telescope Array observatory seeks to understand several important questions including the long sought out question of what could be the origin of  terrestrial gamma ray flashes and how is lightning initiated. Dr. Abbasi is also conducting cosmic ray anisotropy study using data collected by the IceCube and IceTop detectors. Such anisotropy would allow us to understand the origin and propagation of cosmic rays in our galactic neighborhood. Her lab offers students opportunities in these research areas and on projects that include detector development, programming, and data analysis. Dr. Abbasi earned her B.S. in Physics at the University of Jordan and Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Utah. Outside of the lab, her favorite TV show is Seinfeld, and she enjoys hiking and yoga.