re: #354 Racer X

Dr. Brian May is an astrophysicist.

Interesting -

May studied physics at Imperial College London, graduating with a B.Sc. (Hons) degree in both Physics and Mathematics and ARCS with Upper Second-Class Honours. He then proceeded to study for a Ph.D degree, also at the Imperial College London departments of Physics and Mathematics, and was part way through this Ph.D programme, studying reflected light from interplanetary dust and the velocity of dust in the plane of the Solar System, when Queen became successful.

He abandoned his physics doctorate but did co-author two scientific research papers: MgI Emission in the Night-Sky Spectrum (1972)[7] and An Investigation of the Motion of Zodiacal Dust Particles (Part I) (1973),[8] which were based on May’s observations at the Teide Observatory in Tenerife. He is the co-author of Bang! – The Complete History of the Universe with Patrick Moore and Chris Lintott, which was published in October 2006.[9]

More than 30 years after he started his research, in October 2007 he completed his Ph.D. thesis in astrophysics[10], entitled A Survey of Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud[11], passed his viva voce, and performed the required corrections.[12][13][14][15] He officially graduated at the postgraduate awards ceremony held in the Royal Albert Hall, on the afternoon of Wednesday 14 May 2008.