– I have been looking at a simulation of a Milky-Way type galaxy, to estimate the emission from singly ionized carbon. Singly ionized carbon has been shown to be a tracer of different phases of the interstellar medium, while also tracing regions of star formation throughout a galaxy. This makes it an interesting tracer, which we need to study closer in simulations to aid in interpreting observations.
– What are the most important things you have learned in your master studies?
– Be confident in what you know, don't be afraid to ask questions, and the night sky is so much prettier once you start to understand the physics behind the light reaching us from distant objects :D.
– What fascinates you the most about astronomy? Why?
– The complexity! How light is used to get information about the universe, and how technology developed for astronomy pushes the limit on the already existing technology.
– Your "message in the bottle" to fellow master students is ...
– Enjoy this last year, it will be a lot of work but nothing you can't handle. And be proud of where you have managed to reach!