Gioia Rau Headshot

Department

  • Physics

    • School

  • College of Engineering, Physics, and Computing

    • Expertise

  • Space science strategy
  • Philanthropic investment in space science
  • Science policy and federal portfolio management
  • Space diplomacy
  • Space mission design and development
  • Leadership
  • AI in astrophysics
  • Optical/IR interferometry
  • Radio/sub-mm interferometry
  • Stellar chromospheres and atmospheres
  • Cool evolved stars
  • Stellar mass loss and circumstellar dust
  • Exoplanet detection and characterization

    • Biography

    Dr. Gioia Rau is an astrophysicist and cross-sector leader shaping the future of space science at the intersection of discovery, policy, and diplomacy. With a career spanning philanthropy, government, and academia, she brings a rare systems-level perspective to building scientific institutions and turning ambitious ideas into missions, programs, and strategy.

    Dr. Rau operates at the frontier of science strategy. As a Program Director IPA on rotation at the National Science Foundation, she led a ~$100+ million in federal astrophysics portfolio and directed NSF's AI-in-Astrophysics initiatives. At Schmidt Sciences (previously Schmidt Futures), she co-led the organization's astronomy and space investment portfolio, designing programs and funding models that accelerate innovation from concept to reality. She is a founding organizer of space diplomacy programming at the Johns Hopkins Science Diplomacy Summit and an Advisory Board member of the JHU Science Diplomacy Hub.

    Despite the breadth of her leadership responsibilities, Dr. Rau remains an active and prolific scientist. A world leader in high-angular-resolution interferometry, she has led or co-led over 490 hours of observing time at the most powerful facilities on Earth and in space - including HST, ALMA, ESO’s VLTI, and CHARA. She has contributed to more than 10 space mission concepts, serving as co-PI of AeSI (a NASA NIAC funded lunar long-baseline UV/optical interferometer, selected at a 4% success rate) and as science lead for JUStIINE and CLEoPATRA. Her research spans cool evolved stars, exoplanet detection via AI, gravitational microlensing, and stellar chromospheres, with over 100 publications and counting, including Nature. At Catholic University, she is a faculty assistant research professor, supervising doctoral students and mentoring postdocs and early-career researchers.

    She has been recognized among the Top 50 Most Influential Scientists in Europe and named Women of the Year by Il Corriere della Sera, and holds a Ph.D. with Honors from the University of Vienna and a Master's Summa Cum Laude from Sapienza University of Rome.

    Publications List