Investigators continue to search for the gunman who shot and killed Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a nuclear physicist, at his home in Brookline. Sources said Thursday that investigators believe his killing may be linked to the Brown University shooting. Loureiro, 47, was shot at his home on Gibbs Street around 9 p.m. Monday night and died Tuesday morning, according to the Norfolk County district attorney’s office.He was a faculty member in the departments of Nuclear Science & Engineering and Physics, as well as the director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center, according to an MIT spokesperson. He joined the prestigious institution in 2016. A theoretical physicist and fusion scientist, Loureiro was appointed to lead the Plasma Science and Fusion Center in 2024. It’s one of MIT’s largest labs, with more than 250 full-time researchers, staff members, and students.He is recognized for advancements in plasma behavior, according to the institute. These include turbulence and the physics of solar flares, along with other astronomical phenomena. Loureiro also had a focus in the fusion domain, where his work enabled the design of devices that can more efficiently control and harness energy.Loureiro, who was married, grew up in Viseu, in central Portugal, and studied in Lisbon before earning a doctorate in London, according to MIT. He was a researcher at an institute for nuclear fusion in Lisbon before joining MIT, it said.Video below: Previous coverage”He shone a bright light as a mentor, friend, teacher, colleague and leader, and was universally admired for his articulate, compassionate manner,” Dennis Whyte, an engineering professor who previously led MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center, told a campus publication.The president of MIT, Sally Kornbluth, said in a statement that Loureiro’s death was a “shocking loss.”The U.S. ambassador to Portugal, John J. Arrigo, expressed his condolences in an online post that honored Loureiro for his leadership and contributions to science.”It’s not hyperbole to say MIT is where you go to find solutions to humanity’s biggest problems,” Loureiro said when he was named to lead the plasma science lab last year. “Fusion energy will change the course of human history.””On behalf of the Brookline Police Department, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of Nuno F.G. Loureiro during this incredibly difficult time,” said Brookline Chief Jennifer Paster. “Our thoughts are with all those who have been affected by this tragic loss.”Police provided an increased presence around the Gibbs Street area in the days after the homicide.Brookline Public Schools Superintendent Bella Wong released a statement to families and staff following the tragic shooting.She said school counseling services would be available for those who need them.”Please join me in holding this family in all of our hearts in their grief and wrap them with all of the compassion we can muster,” Wong said following the shooting.
BROOKLINE, Mass. —
Investigators continue to search for the gunman who shot and killed Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a nuclear physicist, at his home in Brookline. Sources said Thursday that investigators believe his killing may be linked to the Brown University shooting.
Loureiro, 47, was shot at his home on Gibbs Street around 9 p.m. Monday night and died Tuesday morning, according to the Norfolk County district attorney’s office.
He was a faculty member in the departments of Nuclear Science & Engineering and Physics, as well as the director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center, according to an MIT spokesperson. He joined the prestigious institution in 2016.
A theoretical physicist and fusion scientist, Loureiro was appointed to lead the Plasma Science and Fusion Center in 2024. It’s one of MIT’s largest labs, with more than 250 full-time researchers, staff members, and students.
He is recognized for advancements in plasma behavior, according to the institute. These include turbulence and the physics of solar flares, along with other astronomical phenomena. Loureiro also had a focus in the fusion domain, where his work enabled the design of devices that can more efficiently control and harness energy.
Loureiro, who was married, grew up in Viseu, in central Portugal, and studied in Lisbon before earning a doctorate in London, according to MIT. He was a researcher at an institute for nuclear fusion in Lisbon before joining MIT, it said.
Video below: Previous coverage
“He shone a bright light as a mentor, friend, teacher, colleague and leader, and was universally admired for his articulate, compassionate manner,” Dennis Whyte, an engineering professor who previously led MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center, told a campus publication.
The president of MIT, Sally Kornbluth, said in a statement that Loureiro’s death was a “shocking loss.”
The U.S. ambassador to Portugal, John J. Arrigo, expressed his condolences in an online post that honored Loureiro for his leadership and contributions to science.
“It’s not hyperbole to say MIT is where you go to find solutions to humanity’s biggest problems,” Loureiro said when he was named to lead the plasma science lab last year. “Fusion energy will change the course of human history.”
“On behalf of the Brookline Police Department, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of Nuno F.G. Loureiro during this incredibly difficult time,” said Brookline Chief Jennifer Paster. “Our thoughts are with all those who have been affected by this tragic loss.”
Police provided an increased presence around the Gibbs Street area in the days after the homicide.
Brookline Public Schools Superintendent Bella Wong released a statement to families and staff following the tragic shooting.
She said school counseling services would be available for those who need them.
“Please join me in holding this family in all of our hearts in their grief and wrap them with all of the compassion we can muster,” Wong said following the shooting.