About
Introduction
I am a Ph.D. candidate in Astrophysics and Cosmology, based at the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics (JBCA) and affiliated to the University of Manchester. My main areas of research revolve around galaxy clusters, cosmological simulations with supercomputers and large scale structures in the Universe.
In 2019, I graduated with a Master Degree from the University of Manchester with the thesis “Substructures in galaxy clusters: observability study using the MACSIS hydrodynamical simulation and Sunyaev-Zel’dovich signals”. This work, carried out in collaboration with my project partner Martin Murin and my supervisor Dr. Scott Kay, still constitutes an important part of my Ph.D. studies.
My interests span beyond the involvement with scientific research. I particularly enjoy communicating science to the wider public through outreach events, as well as teaching and supervising younger Physics and Astronomy students through different stages of their education. I am a member of the University of Manchester Astronomy Society, which I joined near the beginning of my studies in Manchester and I have been actively supporting ever since. I also demonstrate experiments in Undergraduate Laboratory courses and supervise practical sessions for Python and C++ Object-Oriented Programming courses.
Beside my academic commitments, I am also passionate about photography and hiking. These can be summarised in the picture below, taken while flying over the Swiss and Italian Alps.
Biography
I was born in 1996 and raised in a small town in Central Italy, where I also attended the local Scientific High School.
Soon after the beginning of my studies I started attending public stargazings, hosted at P. F. de Vico astronomical observatory, managed by the Crabnebula astronomy society. I can safely state that this is how all my interest in Astronomy, Physics and science in general begun. Soon after I embarked on the route of the Italian Astronomy Olympiads (years 2011 - 2014) and the International Astronomy Olympiads (Almaty, Kazakhstan 2011 & Vilnius, Lithuania 2013).
Roughly simultaneously to the Astronomy Olympiads, I also developed a strong passion for the most “hands-on” aspects of Astronomy and I decided to invest in the first proper telescope and camera setups: Celestron Starbright C9.25, Skywatcher NEQ6 and a Canon EOS 1100D. Despite the setup not being optimised for long exposures on very faint celestial objects, I managed to observe and capture several nebulae and star clusters, with several exceptional views on the moon and planets during nights with good seeing. In the early lights of the 6th June 2012 I luckily finished building a mylar-based solar filter, just in time for Venus’s transit in front of the sun. Luckily, the sky was partially clear towards the East and together with the Crabnebula society members we managed to observe the sun rising with Venus just about to begin its dance.
Several more special events brightened up my experience with many new incredible friends, fellow astronomy enthusiasts and even professionals, encouraging me to start a Master degree in Physics and Astrophysics at the University of Manchester. At the time of writing I am about to start the final year of my degree, which already introduced me to a wide spectrum of areas of science, interacting together in a truly fascinating way. The purpose of this website is to share the network of ideas that I encounter every day, giving a taste of my routine and my learning experience. I will try to include contents appropriate for the widest range of backgrounds, although many details might fall on the technical side.
As mentioned, such website itself is part of my learning experience and therefore it is conceived as a work in progress, subject to continuous editing and maximally open to any feedback that you may provide.
Résumée
Education
2019 - 2023 PhD, Doctorate in Astrophysics and Cosmology
The University of Manchester | Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics
Thesis title: Building models of the Universe with next-generation hydrodynamic cosmological simulations
2015 - 2019 MPhys, Master (with Honours) in Physics and Astrophysics
The University of Manchester | School of Physics and Astronomy
Thesis title: Substructures in galaxy clusters - observability study using the MACSIS hydrodynamical simulation and Sunyaev-Zel’dovich signals
Awards
President’s Doctoral Scholar Award | 2019
The PDS Award is assigned to “students of the highest calibre who have the commitment and desire to work on challenging research projects in world leading research environments”. PDS holders within the Faculty of Science and Engineering become ambassadors for the University research flagships.
STFC Postgraduate Studentship | 2019
The Science and Technology Facility Council (STFC) awards “studentships to enable promising scientists and engineers to continue training beyond a first degree”, including Ph.D. programs.
Rank Research Prize | 2018
The Rank Prize foundation awards every year a limited number of scholarships, dedicated to research in Optoeletronic Materials among other fields. The funding supported my summer internship, developed in collaboration with the Optoeletronic Materials Spectroscopy (OMS) group, led by Dr. Patrick Parkinson. The title of the project is Rapid Multispectral Photovoltaic Performance Mapping using Structured Light Illumination.
Richard Davis Prize | 2017
The Richard Davis Prize is awarded to the student (or student pair) with the highest experimental performance in the second year of Undergraduate Laboratory.
Don Butler Prize | 2016
The Don Butler Prize is awarded to the student (or student pair) with the highest experimental performance in the first year of Undergraduate Laboratory.
Bronze medal - Italian National Physics Olympiad | 2015
The Italian Physics Olympiads are promoted by the Italian Physics Society (Associazione Italiana per la Fisica - AIF). It is aimed at third to fifth-year high-school students and is divided into theoretical and experimental rounds. Every year, the National competition takes place in mid-April in Senigallia, Italy.
Third best observational round - XVIII International Astronomy Olympiad | 2013
The International Astronomy Olympiad (IAO) is one of the largest events managed by the Euro-Asian Astronomical Society. It brings together Physics and Astronomy high-school students from many different countries for joining a 3-stage competition. The aim of the initiative is to offer young students the opportunity to challenge themselves with theoretical, data-analysis and observational problems, as well as networking and bonding with new friends.
Bronze Medal - XVI International Astronomy Olympiad | 2011
Below is my first plenary IAO group photo, taken in September 2011 at the Bobek (Бобек) Science Centre, Almaty, Kazakhstan. Try spotting me - I’m on the left-hand side of the picture!
Conferences and Seminars
International Conference of Physics Students | 8.2019
Cologne, Germany
“The international conference addresses students from all over the world in a physics or physics related course at all level of studies from bachelor to PhD”.
The presentation materials produced for ICPS 2019 involve my work on the MACSIS simulation and the Master’s project. Follow this link for more details.
OPTICON Summer School | 6.2019
Astronomical Institute of SAS, Tatranská Lomnica, Slovak Republic
Topic: Observational Astrophysics: from proposals to publication
Follow this link for a detailed description of the main project and the paper that resulted from it.
Curriculum Vitae et Studiorum
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