Top astrophysicist moves to Hong Kong to head new HKU institute

World-renowned astrophysicist Zhang Bing has joined the University of Hong Kong as a chair professor after nearly three decades in the United States.

Zhang left the University of Nevada, Las Vegas – where he was a distinguished professor of physics and astronomy – to become the founding director of the newly established Hong Kong Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics (HKIAA) at HKU.

He said his role in Hong Kong was full-time, but he would continue supervising his PhD students in the US until they completed their studies.

After the institute’s inauguration on Monday, Zhang said he was “grateful to colleagues in the astronomy community who came to Hong Kong to witness the historic occasion”.

Zhang said he was grateful to his colleagues who were there for the “historic occasion”. Photo: Handout

The 57-year-old researcher is widely regarded as a leading expert on the mechanisms behind gamma-ray bursts – the most violent explosions in the universe.

He is among the most cited scholars in his field, and his work was recognised in Science magazine’s “Top 10 Breakthroughs of the Year” in both 2005 and 2020.

South China Morning Post