Harrison Blake, a rising senior, has been awarded the Astronaut Scholarship, which recognizes outstanding students in STEM pursuing research careers.
Blake was awarded the scholarship for his initiative, creativity, and leadership in physics and astronomy.
This year, the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation awarded 68 scholarships to students at 46 universities.
Astronaut Scholars receive $15,000 toward undergraduate expenses, and Blake will attend the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Innovators Week and Gala in August in Orlando.
After graduating from the Ohio State University, Blake aims to obtain a Ph.D. in physics to become a professor working to advance gravitational wave interferometry, explore the mysteries of gravity, and teach the next generation of physicists.
He is currently an honors student majoring in Physics and Astronomy and Astrophysics with minors in Mathematics and Creative Writing.
At Ohio State he researches gravity, the extreme mass ratio inspiral scenario, and general relativity with Professor Christopher Hirata.
Blake is a leader in the Astronomy Department as the chair of the Undergraduate Majors in Astronomy and Astrophysics Committee and the Vice President of the Astronomical Society at Ohio State.
Additionally, he supports his peers as a TA in Astronomy courses and tutor in the Math department. This summer Blake will participate in an NSF-funded internship researching with Dr. Davide Gerosa at the University of Milano-Bicocca in Italy.