My name is Cliff Johnson and I am a Research Assistant Professor at Northwestern University in CIERA and the Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, and the Co-Director & Science Lead of the Zooniverse at the Adler Planetarium.

My current research focuses on understanding star formation behavior at spatial scales ranging from that of galaxies down to individual star-forming complexes through the combined study of stellar populations and the interstellar medium. Specifically, I study the formation and evolution of star cluster populations and young pre-main sequence star populations in the Local Group, focusing on how star and cluster formation processes depend on galactic environment. Citizen science and crowdsourcing are important tools in my research.

I currently collaborate as a member of three survey teams: the SMC-SF & SMIDGE surveys, analyzing Hubble Space Telescope imaging of the Small Magellanic Cloud; the SMASH & DELVE surveys, analysing DECam imaging of the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds; and the PHAT/PHAST/PHATTER survey teams, analysing Hubble Space Telescope imaging of the Andromeda & Triangulum Galaxies.

I completed my PhD at the University of Washington under the co-supervision of Julianne Dalcanton and Anil Seth. I analyzed the star cluster population of M31 as part of the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) survey.

Publications List: via ADS