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Profile
| Academic position | Full Professor |
|---|---|
| Research fields | Astrophysics and Astronomy |
| Keywords | Cosmology, Dark Matter and Dark Energy, Imaging Su |
Current contact address
| Country | Germany |
|---|---|
| City | Bochum |
| Institution | Ruhr-Universität Bochum |
| Institute | Astronomisches Institut |
Host during sponsorship
| Prof. Dr. Hendrik Hildebrandt | Astronomisches Institut, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum |
|---|---|
| Start of initial sponsorship | 01/07/2019 |
Programme(s)
| 2018 | Max Planck Humboldt Research Award Programme |
|---|
Nominator's project description
| Professor Heymans is an astrophysicist and astronomer at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. In her field of specialization, the study of mass distribution in the universe and thus especially of dark matter, she is undoubtedly one of the world leaders. Catherine Heymans combines first-class science with outstanding management skills. She is in charge of a number of major international projects in observational astronomy in the search for dark matter- the matter that must exist but that is invisible. To discover Dark Matter, she uses the gravitational lensing effect. Her highly cited work is of fundamental importance for the further development of the entire field of observational cosmology and gravitational wave astronomy. As a young scientist, she has already received many awards for her groundbreaking research. Catherine Heymans began her scientific career in Edinburgh and wrote her doctoral thesis on Weak Gravitational Lensing and Intrinsic Alignments at Oxford. After research stays in Germany, Canada and France she returned to Edinburgh to her alma mater. She is Professor of Observational Cosmology there since 2016. Catherine Heymans is not only an excellent researcher but is also extremely present in communicating exciting scientific results to the public. Her many public lectures are of captivating clarity and she uses many channels of science communication, including online courses and her popular science book The Dark Universe, which has been downloaded over 100,000 times. The host of their highly innovative research project “Understanding the Dark Side of our Universe” is the Argelander Institute for Astronomy at the University of Bonn. |