Student Spotlight: Himansh Rathore
Himansh Rathore passed his oral prelim on September 17.
“I smash galaxies together in a supercomputer,” says Himansh Rathore about his research at Steward Observatory. Himansh is is a PhD scholar and a NASA FINESST Fellow at Steward Observatory. He recently passed his oral preliminary exam and is interested in studying galaxy dynamics, computational astrophysics, extra-galactic astronomy, and cosmology. As he pursues his PhD research, he believes “the elegance lies not in the destination, but in the journey itself.” Read his full interview below:
What brought you to astronomy, and to Steward Observatory?
It’s been a long journey, starting from high school. However, there was one particular night when I was doing some backyard observing from my house and that's when I suddenly had the realization that Astronomy might be the thing for me. The stars, galaxies and clusters that I saw through the telescope that night still remain frozen in my memory.
I was recommended Steward by one of my mentors during undergrad, who said this is one of the best places to pursue a PhD in Astronomy.
Describe your work!
I smash galaxies together in a supercomputer. Yes, one can learn a lot by doing that. Galaxies are constantly interacting in the universe, and these interactions can teach us a lot about what galaxies are made up of - like dark matter, stars, gas, dust etc. This strategy is similar to how particle physicists learn about the subatomic world by colliding particles inside huge tunnels. In particular, I am simulating a galaxy interaction happening right in our backyard, which is the LMC-SMC galaxy system (also known as the Clouds). The Clouds are the most massive satellite galaxies of our Milky Way, and they have been likely going around each other since a long, long time. Specifically, I am excited to learn how stars and gas move around galaxies during such interactions, as well has the role of dark matter in such interactions.
What's your greatest point of pride from your time at Steward?
When after more than 100 failed attempts I finally got a simulation to work!
How do you spend your time outside of Steward?
I enjoy hiking around the mountains in Tucson. I play badminton and tennis, and I am actively trying to learn guitar!
Can you share piece of wisdom from your time as an astronomy student?
Research is an endless cycle, where every answer leads to a problem. The elegance lies not in the destination, but in the journey itself.
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