B.S., New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Ph.D., Arizona State University
Dr. Vanlandingham is the Director of the West Chester University Planetarium. She teaches General Astronomy, Geology of the Solar and System, and The Origin of Life and the Universe. Dr. Vanlandingham studies interacting binary stars, specifically classical nova explosions. She uses observations and computer models to determine the elemental abundances produced in these explosions. It is thought that novae may be responsible for some of the isotopic anomalies seen in meteoritic inclusions in our solar system and may also contribute significantly to the abundance of some isotopes of aluminum and sodium seen distributed throughout the galaxy. Dr. Vanlandingham's research also includes studies of isolated magnetic white dwarfs. Some of these stars have been found to have magnetic fields of 1000 mega-gauss - over billion times stronger than the Earth's magnetic field. Dr. Vanlandingham's other areas of interest include how popular culture influences what we think of science, great debates in science, and elementary education and public outreach.