Graduating Hoo Looks Forward to Asian Odyssey, Rhodes Scholarship

Most of Crowe’s work so far has involved observational astronomy research, using telescopes and analyzing their data, but for his senior thesis project, he’s shifted to more theoretical work, running astrophysical simulations.

“We model the sort of environments we observe with telescopes,” he said, “so we can better understand the physical processes at play. In this case, it’s a young star producing ionizing radiation, the same light rays that can cause skin cancer, in an environment similar to Sagittarius C.”

Crowe has been an undergraduate researcher since his first spring semester, when astronomy professor Jonathan Tan gave a research talk in one of his introductory classes. Crowe approached him afterward to ask about opportunities to work with him. “I asked him a lot of questions during his talk, which I think made a good impression, and introduced myself after. All the rest of my research has sprung from that simple introduction, and putting myself out there,” he said.

Crowe is the 57th Rhodes Scholar in the history of UVA, which produces the most Rhodes Scholars of any American public university. After graduating from Oxford, Crowe will pursue a doctorate in astrophysics at the California Institute of Technology.

Crowe visits the IRAM 30-meter radio telescope in the Sierra Nevada mountains in Spain (Photo by Alejandro Romar)

As a UVA student, Crowe was an Echols Scholar and recipient of a full-tuition University Achievement Award, which he said gave him “the academic and financial freedom to fully pursue [his] academic interests.”

He’s following in the footsteps of two older brothers and his mother, all of whom attended UVA. “I didn’t even visit after being admitted,” he said. “I was that certain it was the place for me.”

Originally from Chesapeake, Crowe said he is grateful for two high school teachers who nurtured his interests in history and physics. He knew from his first high school physics class that he wanted to pursue astrophysics, and a class on the Roman republic and empire with history professor Jon Lendon in the spring of his first year at UVA sold him on a second major. “And from there, the rest was history,” he said.

Outside of academics, he’s been heavily involved in the leadership of the Astronomy Club, of which he served as treasurer, vice president, and president during his first three years. He’s currently vice president of the Forestry Club, which provides service to local city parks around Albemarle County and Virginia state parks.

Crowe also joined the Culture of Respect Educators, a peer education group focusing on sexual assault prevention and education, after attending one of their talks in his dorm during Wahoo Welcome. He is also a member of the Raven Society.

Most days before Final Exercises, he can be found in the lab, which, for him, means sitting in the astronomy undergraduate student lounge on his laptop, working with data.