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Research facility · Tucson · United States

NSF NOIRLab

In research, NSF NOIRLab stands highest in Physical Sciences (#3,092 of 12,888 worldwide) and Physics and Astronomy (#862 of 1,646 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Astronomy and Astrophysics and Physics and Astronomy — Astronomy and Astrophysics is 90.2× its share of world research.

noirlab.eduROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#5,405
of 28,054 · #10,503 all time
Rank in United States
#736
of 4,192
Research works
213
▲ 1495% vs 2013–17
Citations
4.3k
20.2 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
23.5%
record average 16.5%
Open access
78%
world 28%

What is NSF NOIRLab known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #3,092 of 12,888 26.5%97 #6199
Physics and AstronomyField #862 of 1,646 32.1%73 #2334

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where NSF NOIRLab sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

What does NSF NOIRLab specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Astronomy and Astrophysics takes 90.2× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Astronomy and AstrophysicsSubfield · 52.1 works90×
  2. Physics and AstronomyField · 73.5 works30×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.10× its world share, 0 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.05× its world share, 0 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.06× its world share, 0 worksNeuroscienceChemical Engineering: 0.07× its world share, 0 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.97× its world share, 2 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.55× its world share, 5 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.65× its world share, 1 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.08× its world share, 0 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.72× its world share, 12 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.42× its world share, 2 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.27× its world share, 1 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.12× its world share, 0 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 29.71× its world share, 74 worksPhysics and AstronomyHealth Professions: 0.34× its world share, 1 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.15× its world share, 3 worksMedicineNursing: 0.92× its world share, 0 worksNursingArts and Humanities: 0.42× its world share, 1 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.13× its world share, 0 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 3.67× its world share, 4 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.22× its world share, 0 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.20× its world share, 1 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.13× its world share, 2 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Physics and Astronomy, 29.7×. Every wedge is a field page.

Which keywords describe research at NSF NOIRLab?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Star Formation, Astronomical Instrumentation, Spectrograph, Exoplanets, Stellar Astrophysics, Black Holes, Accretion Disks and Magnetic Fields.

▲ more of its work than of the world’s◆ about the world’s share▼ less than the world’s

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Star Formation15▲ 253×2 topics
  2. Astronomical Instrumentation14▲ 480×1 topic
  3. Spectrograph14▲ 480×1 topic
  4. Exoplanets13▲ 302×1 topic
  5. Stellar Astrophysics13▲ 302×1 topic
  6. Black Holes12▲ 109×3 topics
  7. Accretion Disks10▲ 184×2 topics
  8. Magnetic Fields10▲ 133×2 topics
  9. Cosmology9▲ 119×2 topics
  10. Dark Matter9▲ 69×3 topics
  11. Galaxies8▲ 272×1 topic
  12. Stellar Populations8▲ 272×1 topic
  13. Molecular Clouds6▲ 232×1 topic
  14. Protoplanetary Disks6▲ 232×1 topic
  15. Turbulence6▲ 67×2 topics
  16. Gravitational Waves6▲ 104×2 topics
  17. Supernovae6▲ 70×2 topics
  18. Nucleosynthesis6▲ 111×3 topics
  19. Gamma-Ray Bursts6▲ 195×1 topic
  20. Neutron Stars6▲ 195×1 topic
  21. Spectroscopy5▲ 28×6 topics
  22. Radio Astronomy5▲ 199×2 topics
  23. Historical Figures4▲ 217×2 topics
  24. High-Resolution Imaging4▲ 78×2 topics
  25. Solar Observations4▲ 373×1 topic
  26. Transits of Venus4▲ 373×1 topic
  27. Solar System Abundances4▲ 72×1 topic
  28. Terrestrial Planets4▲ 72×1 topic
  29. Galactic Center4▲ 70×2 topics
  30. Adaptive Optics3▲ 235×1 topic
  31. Wavefront Sensing3▲ 235×1 topic
  32. Event Horizon Telescope3▲ 128×1 topic
  33. X-Ray Astronomy3▲ 128×1 topic
  34. Structural Health Monitoring3▲ 32×2 topics
  35. Optical 3D Laser Measurement3▲ 212×1 topic
  36. Position-Sensitive Detector3▲ 212×1 topic
  37. Workflow Management3▲ 34×2 topics
  38. Mars2▲ 65×1 topic
  39. Martian Surface2▲ 65×1 topic
  40. Cosmic Rays2▲ 36×2 topics

Which research topics does NSF NOIRLab publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Astronomy and Astrophysical Research, Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies, Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena and Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies.

Astronomy and Astrophysi…14Astronomy and Astrophysical Research: 14 fractional worksStellar, planetary, and …13Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies: 13 fractional worksGalaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena: 8 fractional worksAstrophysics and Star Formation Studies: 6 fractional worksGamma-ray bursts and supernovae: 6 fractional worksHistory and Developments…4History and Developments in Astronomy: 4 fractional worksAstro and Planetary Science: 4 fractional worksAdaptive optics and wavefront sensing: 3 fractional worksAstrophysical Phenomena and Observations: 3 fractional worksAstronomical Observations and Instrumentation: 3 fractional works
InstrumentationAstronomy and AstrophysicsAtomic and Molecular Physics, and OpticsComputational Mechanics

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Astronomy and Astrophysical Research Instrumentation 14 works
  2. 2 Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies Astronomy and Astrophysics 13 works
  3. 3 Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena Astronomy and Astrophysics 8 works
  4. 4 Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies Astronomy and Astrophysics 6 works
  5. 5 Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae Astronomy and Astrophysics 6 works
  6. 6 History and Developments in Astronomy Astronomy and Astrophysics 4 works
  7. 7 Astro and Planetary Science Astronomy and Astrophysics 4 works
  8. 8 Adaptive optics and wavefront sensing Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics 3 works
  9. 9 Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations Astronomy and Astrophysics 3 works
  10. 10 Astronomical Observations and Instrumentation Computational Mechanics 3 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world’s own shares — the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available78.2%not open21.8%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors49.9%domestic only50.1%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has NSF NOIRLab's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 1495% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Other research institutions in Tucson

All research institutions in Tucson

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.