People
People
Prof. Jan Cami
Director
Dr. Jan Cami is a Professor and Director of the Hume Cronyn Memorial Observatory at Western University in Ontario, Canada. He is also a Research Associate at the SETI Institute in California. Jan’s research focuses on studying gas and dust around dying stars and in the interstellar medium using ground-based and space telescopes. He is known for discovering the largest molecular species ever identified in space, the fullerenes C60 and C70.
In addition to his research and teaching work, Jan is also actively involved in science outreach. He is passionate about sharing his love of astronomy and science with the public and is committed to making science accessible to everyone. Some of his notable outreach activities include organizing the Science Rendezvous festival at Western, giving public lectures on astronomy, hosting public and private observing nights at the Hume Cronyn Observatory, and providing expert commentary to local and national media outlets. For his outstanding work in astronomy communication, public education, and outreach, Jan was awarded the Qilak Award from the Canadian Astronomical Society in 2019.
Dr. Mark Tovey
Observatory Curator
Dr. Mark Tovey is the Observatory Curator at Cronyn Observatory, leading the design of historical exhibits and the care of historical collections. He designed three period rooms in the observatory as permanent exhibits: a 1940s-era observatory director’s office (2015), a 1960s-era telescope control room (2017), and a 1940s-era observatory workshop (2018). He actively conducts research on the history of astronomy and has a forthcoming edited book for which he curated astronomical art from the 16th-20th centuries.
Charmi Bhatt
Outreach Coordinator
Charmi is a Astronomy PhD student with a fascinating research focus on molecules in space. Originally from India, Charmi completed her undergraduate studies in physics there before moving to Canada to pursue her Master’s degree in 2021. At Cronyn Observatory she co-organizes outreach events.
As a child, she was captivated by the creativity and curiosity of science video creators on YouTube, and this sparked her interest in science communication. She loves sharing her knowledge and enthusiasm with others, and is always eager to engage with people at the Observatory about astronomy and science in general. she often writes science blogs for her personal website (https://charmibhatt.com/) and produces science videos, occasionally. She is an avid collector of space merchandise and enjoys designing websites and composing animations.
Anusha Ravikumar
Outreach Assistant
Anusha Ravikumar is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Physics and Astronomy. Her work with Dr. Aaron Sigut focuses on understanding hot, massive emission-line stars, employing observational and modeling techniques. She is actively invested in science communication, educating the general audience about contemporary research in space science. She also spends time coloring or in pottery as a hobby.
Samantha Lambier
Outreach Assistant
Samantha is a PhD student in astronomy with a specialization in planetary science. She is studying the rotation of the smallest stars (and ‘failed stars’) in the stellar neighbourhood, with the goal of using that information to look for planets — and life — around them. She has a passion for science communication public outreach to inspire others to learn more about the wonders of space. In her free time, Samantha loves reading, singing, stargazing, and cursing Starlink satellites and light pollution for destroying the night sky.
Adrien Hélias
Outreach Assistant
Adrien Hélias is a PhD student in Astronomy working under the supervision of Dr. Pauline Barmby and Dr. Sarah Gallagher. He studies the relationship between the variability timescale of active galactic nuclei and their central black hole mass. He came from France after doing a Master in Astronomy & Astrophysics at the Observatoire de Paris in 2022. In addition to being an Outreach Assistant at Cronyn, Adrien also advocates with a lot of passion for the Canadian astronomy student community, as the Chair of the Graduate Student Committee of the Canadian Astronomical Society. Outside of academia, Adrien loves to cook and bake, do graphic design, pet cats, and play board games.
Sashank Vanga
Outreach Assistant
Sashank is a Geology PhD candidate at Western, in the Planetary Science and Exploration collaborative specialization. He is under the supervision of Dr. Catherine Neish, and is currently working on comparing LiDAR and radar remote sensing data from terrestrial analogs of Mars and the Moon. Outside school, Sashank likes to stargaze, play video games and do science outreach.
Previous members
Bavithra Naguleswaran
Outreach Assistant
Bavithra is a master’s student at the University of Western Ontario. Her favourite part of astronomy is understanding the formation, evolution and structure of galaxies and has chosen to do her research in exactly that. Bavithra is also an outreach assistant at Cronyn observatory. She loves to educate others on astronomy hoping that she inspires someone else the way she was once inspired to understand the universe. Her favourite part of being an outreach assistant is showing activities that help us understand astronomy a little bit better. Outside of Cronyn, she also loves to read, do puzzles, play sports, travel and look at pretty pictures of galaxies.
Nasra Yarow
B.L.U.E intern
Nasra Yarow is a 4th year undergrad student pursuing an Honours Business Administration at the Ivey Business School at Western University. Nasra is a student in Western’s Black Leadership University Experience (B.L.U.E) program where she was selected to work at the Hume Cronyn Observatory. Nasra decided to make her mission at the observatory about outreach into the Black community in London as she is passionate about increasing the representation and visibility of Black people in Astronomy. After she graduates, Nasra will head into a career in business management consulting.
