Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) logo

Andrea Sylvia Biscoveanu

Sylvia (MIT) is joining CIERA as a NASA Einstein Fellow, using gravitational-wave data to understand the properties of compact-object mergers, their electromagnetic counterparts, and the stochastic gravitational-wave background. As an Einstein Fellow at CIERA, Sylvia will work on developing new data analysis techniques that will be critical to the astrophysical interpretation of the growing catalog of observations with the ultimate goal of laying the groundwork for the methods required to detect the gravitational-wave signature of the early Universe.

Sarah Blunt

Sarah (Caltech) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. She is interested in observational tracers of the planet formation process. In particular, Sarah focuses on detecting young giant planets using radial velocities and direct imaging, particularly optical interferometry.

Deepika Bollimpalli

Deepika (Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, Garching) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. As a computational astrophysicist, her research focuses on understanding the nature of spectral and temporal variability features observed in black hole systems using General Relativistic Magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulation. Deepika is also interested in star-disc interaction simulations, particularly how the interaction with an AGN disc affects an evolved star like a red giant.

Mark Gorski

Mark (Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. His research focuses on observations of nearby galaxies and their nuclear growth using astrochemical methods. Using different tracers of the interstellar medium, he aims to identify key feedback processes that dictate galaxy evolution, identify the processes in galaxies that generate biologically important molecules, and reveal processes that grow supermassive black holes.

Goni Halevi

Goni (Princeton University) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. Her research focuses on developing self-consistent models of high-energy astrophysical problems. In particular, Goni is interested in potential sites of heavy element nucleosynthesis, including the deaths of massive stars and mergers between compact objects. At CIERA, she will continue to study energetic transient events with the goal of connecting her computational simulations directly to observational constraints and developing predictions in preparation for upcoming data from the Vera Rubin Observatory and other projects.

Jiaru Li

Jiaru (Cornell University) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. His research focuses on the dynamics of planetary systems and gravitational wave sources. At CIERA, he plans to use both semi-analytical methods and numerical simulations to study the hydrodynamical evolution of protoplanetary disks, planet-disk interactions, and the dynamical formation of black hole binaries.

Tim Miller

Tim (Yale University) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. Tim develops and applies flexible methods to study the morphology of galaxies in the early universe. At CIERA, Tim will use new data from the JWST to understand how the structure of galaxies evolves from the early universe to the present day. JWST also opens the door to the possibility of studying the distribution of stellar populations within galaxies giving new insight into how they formed.

Noah Rogers

Noah (University of Minnesota) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Associate working with Prof. Allison Strom. His research is focused on the chemical enrichment and evolution of star-forming dwarf and spiral galaxies. Noah utilizes optical/NIR spectroscopy of these systems to directly measure gas-phase properties that are linked to the presence of heavy elements and are tracers of galactic and evolutionary mechanisms. At CIERA, he will apply the techniques he has employed in the local universe to high-z galaxies observed with the JWST.

Sanaea Rose

Sanaea (UCLA) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. She studies how interactions in dense stellar clusters lead to unique populations of stars, binaries, and black holes. At CIERA, Sanaea is interested in connecting these environments to gravitational wave sources and electromagnetic signals.

Steve Schulze

Steve (Oskar Klein Centre at the University of Stockholm) is joining us as a CIERA Research Associate working with Prof. Adam Miller. At CIERA, Steve will be analyzing the demographics of supernova explosions and taking advantage of the synergy between the La Silla Schmidt Southern Survey, the Vera Rubin Observatory and the Zwicky Transient Facility. He aims to answer fundamental questions about the stars which form these events, the physics that operate within them, and their role in shaping the Universe at large.

Xinfeng Xu

Xinfeng (Johns Hopkins University) is joining us as a CIERA Postdoctoral Fellow. At CIERA, Xinfeng plans to study various aspects of galaxy astronomy, including galactic outflows and their feedback effects, cosmic reionization, and high-redshift galaxies.