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Faculty Member

Dr. Kim Nielsen

Biography

I got my BS in physics from University of Copenhagen (I am Danish) before I decided to stepping into the wild as a MS student of physics at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. After 4 years in the wild, I moved to Utah State University where I received my PhD in physics. Hauling my way out of Utah, I went to Washington D.C., where I spent two years in my car on I-95 and occasionally worked at the Naval Research Laboratory developing censored by DOD. One day, I took a different exit and ended up in Boulder, Colorado, where I enjoyed 3 years of research working on my own NSF projects and the NASA Aeronomy of Ice (AIM) satellite mission (pretty exciting algorithm retrieval development). I always enjoyed teaching and combined with the stressful hustle of writing research grants, I decided to pursue my luck in higher education. Back to Utah I went and have now been at UVU since 2012.
Aside from teaching, I love researching waves in the near-space environment, cosmic rays, and general relativity, launching high-altitude balloons and high-powered amateur rockets.

Teaching

PHYS 2210

Physics for Scientists and Engineers I, Spring 2026

PHYS 2215

Physics for Scientists and Engineers I Lab, Spring 2026

PHYS 2220

Physics for Scientists and Engineers II, Spring 2026

PHYS 2225

Physics for Scientists and Engineers II Lab, Spring 2026

PHYS 4890R

Undergraduate Research in Physics, Spring 2026

Presentations

Nielsen, Kim , American Association of Physics Teachers, "Rethinking Physics Instruction_ A Tiered Model Bridging Flexibility and Rigor to Empower Diverse Learners", AAPT, Las Vegas, NV. (January 17, 2026)
Tenbrink, Taylor (Presenter & Author), Nielsen, Kim (Co-Author), 2025 Annual Meeting of the APS Four Corners Section, "Sensitivity of Solar Neutrino Oscillations to Density Profile Perturbations", University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado. (October 11, 2025)
Blackburn, Haley (Presenter & Author), Nielsen, Kim (Co-Author), Tsuda, Takuo (Co-Author), Shiokawa, Kazuo (Co-Author), 2025 Annual Meeting of the APS Four Corners Section, "Engaging Students in Atmospheric Research_ Airglow Imaging of Gravity Waves at High Latitudes", University of Northern Colorado, Greely, CO. (October 10, 2025)
Nielsen, Kim (Co-Author), Blackburn, Haley (Presenter & Author), 7th ANtarctic Gravity Wave Instrument Network (ANGWIN) Workshop, "Airglow Imaging of Gravity Waves at High Latitudes", Utah State University, Logan, UT. (October 6, 2025)
Tenbrink, Taylor (Presenter & Author), Nielsen, Kim (Co-Author), SCULPT Showcase, "NUMERICAL SOLUTIONS TO THE SCHRÖDINGER EQUATION WITH SCREENED COULOMB POTENTIALS", UVU, Orem. (April 8, 2025)
Blackburn, Haley (Presenter & Author), Nielsen, Kim (Co-Author), SCULPT Showcase, "Processing and Preliminary Analysis of All-Sky Airglow Images ", UVU, UVU. (April 8, 2025)
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