Tom Millar holds a BSc in Mathematics and a PhD in Astrophysics from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST). Following his PhD he held research fellowships in Toronto and Oxford before returning to UMIST where he was appointed to a lectureship in the Department of Mathematics before becoming Professor of Astrophysics in the Department of Physics in 1995. He was subsequently served as Head of Department and Pro-Vice-Chancellor. In 2006 he moved to Queen’s University Belfast as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences and Professor of Astrophysics in the School of Mathematics and Physics.
His research interests are in the field of molecular astrophysics, at the intersection of physics, chemistry and astronomy. He makes use of radio and sub-millimeter wave telescopes in Hawaii, Chile and Sweden to study the emission lines of molecules as probes of the physics of star formation and the chemistry of space.
He has published more than 200 research articles and edited six books on astrophysics.