📰 Northwestern's Tjitske Starkenburg's stellar stream discovery is now getting national coverage — featured by @cnn.com this week! bit.ly/4hFkNaN

Astronomers use a trail of stars beyond the Milky Way to map a distant galaxy’s dark matter | CNN

In a first, astronomers say they’ve detected a long ribbon of stars outside the Milky Way. The globular cluster stellar stream could reveal clues about dark matter.

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Astronomers have found the first stellar stream ever identified outside the Milky Way — and they're using it to map invisible dark matter. Northwestern's Tjitske Starkenburg co-authored the discovery, published today in @nature.com. bit.ly/3UvAcR9

Cosmic breadcrumb trail reveals hidden dark matter

Astronomers discover first globular cluster stellar stream outside the Milky Way

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CIERA is hiring a Part-Time Program Assistant! Join our close-knit team supporting astrophysics research, education, and public outreach. Know someone who’d be a great fit? Help us spread the word! Read more & Apply by Aug. 28: ciera.northwestern.edu/opportunities/2026-part-time-program-assistant/

Tech Council Assistant Program Coordinator Caleb Krueger recently represented CIERA at the 2026 SciPy conference, hosting a community discussion titled "The Academy and Industry: Building Interdisciplinary Relationships." Read more here: ciera.northwestern.edu/2026/08/07/c...

CIERA brings academia-industry discussion to annual SciPy conference

Every year, users and developers of an open-source library of coding tools and algorithms — known as Scientific Python — gather for a conference to showcase projects made with the programming toolkit ...

ciera.northwestern.edu

How do black holes end up on a collision course? A new @science.org feature highlights research from CIERA Director Vicky Kalogera, Postdoctoral Fellow Anarya Ray, and former CIERA postdocs Sylvia Biscoveanu, Sharan Banagiri, and Maya Fishbach.

How does the universe set black holes on a collision course?

Black holes can form spiraling pairs in three different ways, the gravitational waves from hundreds of collisions suggest

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CIERA Astronomer Evening tonight at Dearborn, 9 PM!

The CIERA Tech Council had its inaugural meeting April 13. The new 9-member group will build bridges between astronomy and industry through collaboration, mentorship, and events.

July's CIERA Astronomer Evening is just around the corner - join us next Friday for a fascinating talk and a chance to observe the night sky through Dearborn Observatory's historic telescope.

We are so proud of CIERA's Alice Cai, Charles Gibson, Josh Harry, and Andy Marszewski! Each student won a $10,000 fellowship award from the Illinois Space Grant Consortium (ISGC) to support their research in the 2026-2027 academic year. Read more: ciera.northwestern.edu/2026/07/16/f...

Four CIERA students awarded $10,000 each from NASA-funded grant program

Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) graduate students Alice Cai, Charles Gibson, Josh Harry, and Andy Marszewski are four of 28 total recipients to earn a $10...

ciera.northwestern.edu

Ready to launch your independent research career in planetary astronomy? 🔭🪐 Applications are open for the 2026/2027 51 Pegasi b Fellowship, offering up to $492K over 3 years. Northwestern is proud to be a host institution! 📅Apply by Oct. 1: bit.ly/4bAYYFc

51 Pegasi b Fellowship at Northwestern

Northwestern University is excited to be a host institution for the Heising-Simons Foundation’s 51 Pegasi b Fellowship. Fellows can collaborate on planetary astronomy research and can benefit from aff...

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This elusive pink planetary-mass companion is too faint for astronomers to investigate with ground-based instruments. But with the help of the James Webb Space Telescope, a recent study led by CIERA postdoctoral scholar Aneesh Baburaj discovered salty clouds surrounding the cold “Pink Planet.” ☁️🧂

Famous ‘Pink Planet’ harbors a salty surprise

James Webb Space Telescope finds salt clouds surround one of the coldest objects ever studied Northwestern University-led astronomers have discovered salty skies surrounding the universe’s famous “Pi...

ciera.northwestern.edu

This spring, former CIERA member Francesca Valsecchi, Ph.D., as well as CIERA Tech Council Member, Angus Forbes, Ph.D., presented as part of the CIERA Connections speaker series!

This week, we welcomed a cohort of 13 students from colleges and universities across the country for the Research Experience for Undergraduates program, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

The Graduate School (TGS) announced CIERA Graduate Student Elena González Prieto as one of only six awarded the Northwestern Presidential Fellowship for 2026. It is the most prestigious fellowship awarded to graduate students at Northwestern University.

Elena Gonzalez Prieto awarded Northwestern Presidential Fellowship

On June 22 The Graduate School (TGS) of Northwestern University announced CIERA Graduate Student Elena González Prieto as one of only six awarded the Presidential Fellowship for 2026. It is the most p...

ciera.northwestern.edu

Our REACH program started today! High school students from across the country gathered at Dearborn Observatory for solar observing after visiting CNAIR. They were joined in a coding lecture by high school teachers from our RET program, which also started today.

We are pleased to announce a wonderful new addition to our CIERA Board of Visitors — Martha Koch. Martha brings with her a wealth of experience in business and continuing education, and we're excited about the perspectives and energy she will bring to our community.

Martha Koch

Martha Koch is managing partner of Remark LLC, a real estate management firm based in Evanston, Illinois. In addition to her professional work, she is an active board member of the Alumnae of Northwes...

ciera.northwestern.edu

The hunt is over. After more than 50 years of searching, CIERA astrophysicists Mark Gorski and Elena Murchikiova have finally discovered evidence of a powerful wind blowing from the Milky Way’s central supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*).

Found: Milky Way black hole’s missing wind

The half-century-long search is finally over, opening a new window into the physics at play in the center of the galaxy The hunt is over. After more than 50 years of searching, astrophysicists at ...

ciera.northwestern.edu

More than 400 people gathered at Northwestern University on May 28 for CIERA’s fifth annual “Astronomy Night Out,” a free public program that brings the wonder of discovery beyond the laboratory and into the broader community. t.co/16vnOhxlQp

Congratulations to CIERA PhD student Elizabeth Moné on being awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowships! The NSF GRFP is one of the most prestigious fellowships for graduate students in STEM fields.

CIERA PhD Student Elizabeth Moné Awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

The 2026 awardees of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) includes CIERA member Elizabeth Moné! The GRFP recognizes outstanding graduate students who are...

ciera.northwestern.edu

Join us tonight for this month’s Astronomer Evening! Please note our new summer hours: 9–11 PM.

We are proud to announce that William Balmer has been named Northwestern University’s first Heising-Simons Foundation 51 Pegasi b Fellow and a member of the Tenth Class of 51 Pegasi b Fellows! Congratulations William! bit.ly/4e53ePl #Astrophysics #PlanetaryScience

CIERA Announces Northwestern’s First 51 Pegasi b Fellowship Recipient

The Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) is proud to announce that William Balmer (they/them) has been named Northwestern University’s first Heising-Simons Fou...

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Check out the latest video from the CIERA Spotlight Series, where scientists share their journeys, discoveries, and the human side of science—because behind every breakthrough is a story! Learn about exploding white dwarfs with Dr. Lindsey Kwok! tinyurl.com/yc7mnp9f

We are delighted to announce that six outstanding CIERA Postdoctoral Fellows will be joining the CIERA community in Fall 2026. Please join us in extending a warm welcome to these outstanding researchers! tinyurl.com/4m5547up

CIERA Welcomes six new CIERA Postdoctoral Fellows

We are delighted to announce that six CIERA Postdoctoral Fellows will be joining the CIERA community in Fall 2026. Please join us in extending a warm welcome to these outstanding researchers! William...

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Join the Giant Magellan Summit for a 45-min global update on the science & engineering behind the Giant Magellan Telescope. Northwestern is a proud partner in this transformative project. #giantmagellan ✨ Live Q&A with GMT experts 👉 Register: summit.giantmagellan.org

Join us Friday for this month’s CIERA Astronomer Evening! Nathalie Jones (Graduate Fellow) will give a talk on searching for new exoplanets through direct imaging. Telescope viewing will follow. 📍 Dearborn Observatory 🕗 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM

🚀 Ready to launch your career in data-driven astronomy? Apply now to become an LSST-DA Data Science Fellow—but don’t wait, the deadline is March 27! bit.ly/4rKEmzQ #DataScience #Fellowship #GraduateSchool #Astronomy #LSST #CIERA #NorthwesternU

Data Science Fellowship Program | LSST Discovery Alliance

Learn about the LSST-DA Data Science Fellowship, which positions graduate students to master the challenges posed by large astronomy datasets.

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Enectali Figueroa-Feliciano, Northwestern Physicist, Associate VP for Research, and Core Faculty Member at CIERA, is helping advance the groundbreaking SuperCDMS SNOLAB experiment as it moves into its next phase. Watch his interview on Fox News Chicago yesterday: lnkd.in/gyqnUXhM

Ready to level up your data science skills and explore the universe at scale? Designed for graduate students in astronomy and related fields, the LSST-DA Data Science Fellowship Program is now accepting applications! 🔗 Learn more and apply: bit.ly/4rKEmzQ

Data Science Fellowship Program | LSST Discovery Alliance

Learn about the LSST-DA Data Science Fellowship, which positions graduate students to master the challenges posed by large astronomy datasets.

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CIERA astronomers Dino Chih-Chun Hsu and Jason Wang have uncovered one of the clearest ways yet to distinguish giant planets from brown dwarfs—objects often called “failed stars”: their spin. Read more: bit.ly/4cUJnC4 #Astronomy #Exoplanets #SpaceScience #Astrophysics