News and Events

Dr. Njeri is a Post Doctoral Research Associate (PDRA) in Extragalactic Astrophysics at Newcastle University. She is currently working on the Quasar Feedback Survey, using radio observations from various facilities to understand how quasars influence their host galaxies.

In addition to her research, Dr. Njeri is passionate about education and mentorship. She founded and leads the program “Elimisha Msichana Elimisha Jamii, EMEJA” (Swahili for “Educate a Girl, Educate the Entire Community”). This mentorship program addresses gender disparity and promotes equality in education among young schoolgirls in rural areas of Kenya and Uganda. The program also tackles socio-economic issues like early marriages, teenage pregnancies, and poverty through astronomy outreach programs, mentorship, and STEM workshops.

You can read her article titled ‘Helping more girls complete basic education in Kenya’ here: https://is.gd/ZoYTEy

Prof. Mirjana Pović is a Serbian-Spanish astrophysicist, working as an assistant professor at the Space Science and Geospatial Institute in Ethiopia, an associate researcher at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia in Spain, and an honorary lecturer at Mbarara University of Science and Technology in Uganda. She obtained her PhD in astrophysics in 2010 from the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (Spain). Her main research interests include galaxy formation and evolution, particularly nuclear activity in galaxies, star formation, morphological classification of galaxies, and galaxy clusters.

Her outreach talk aims to give more visibility to the challenges we face when conducting research and teaching astronomy in conflict contexts. It also serves as a reminder that, in such contexts, astronomy must be used more than ever to constantly transmit the message that we all live under the same sky and to promote peace-building through science and its peaceful applications.

Mr. Thabo Msiza Passed His Masters With Distinction

Mr. Thabo Msiza, under the supervision of Prof. Soebur Razzaque, has graduated with a Masters in Physics, receiving a distinction for his dissertation. In his own words, a brief overview of his dissertation can be found below:

My dissertation focused on utilizing a beyond the Standard Model (BSM) framework, specifically the revamped Babu-Ma-Valle model (Revamped BMV model), to obtain improved constraints on the poorly determined neutrino oscillation parameters of δ_{CP} and θ_{23}. To achieve this, I analyzed long-baseline neutrino experimental data from NOvA (NuMI Off-axis ve Appearance) and T2K (Tokai to Kamioka). These ongoing experiments are well-suited to provide precise measurements for these challenging parameters. The results of my analysis indicated an improvement in the constraint on θ_{23} from the NOvA experiment. However, there were no significant changes in the constraints for δ_{CP}. The results from T2K did not provide any new constraints, but it is worth noting that this may change as new data becomes available every few years.

Mr. Luyanda Mazwi mentioned in the ‘Citizen Maverick’

Mr. Luyanda Mazwi, a Master’s Student, has been in the spotlight in the ‘Maverick Citizen’ for his creation of a portable cooling system made entirely of recycled plastic that does not require electricity. This innovative design showcases his exceptional skills and provides street vendors with a practical solution to prevent their produce from spoiling within a day. Mr. Mazwi’s pioneering design is a testament to his ingenuity and unwavering determination to make a positive impact on society.

Mr. Mazwi boldly orchestrated and financed an evening of music and poetry, driven by a pure desire to inquire if anyone possesses a 3D printer with potential to aid in the development of his product. His noble goal is to share the intellectual property, enabling anyone to construct and market these innovative cooling systems.

If you can help Mr. Luyanda Mazwi gain access to a 3D printer that can print over 260 degrees Celsius and is not PTFE lined, please email info@theactionists.co.za.