Perth astrophysicists study of 'beautiful spirals', 'mosh pits' driven by new space telescope

From a young age, astrophysicist Robin Cook had a deep desire to understand the world around him.

“It’s never nice enough to take things at face value … I’ve always wanted to understand how things work,” he said.

It was this natural curiosity that led him to pursue a career researching space and the unknown.

“It’s not too surprising that I naturally went into astronomy,” he said.

“There are so many unanswered questions in astronomy, we actually have pretty limited knowledge of what’s really out there.

“And for me, it’s very interesting.”

Seeing the galaxy’s ‘beautiful spiral’

Dr Cook is a research associate at the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), which is run by Curtin University and the University of Western Australia.

Founded in 2009, the research center conducts data-intensive astronomy, engineering and science.

Dr Cook studies the structure of galaxies.(Provided: Robin Cook)

Dr Cook’s area of ​​research at ICRAR is on the evolution of galaxies, more specifically the structure of these galaxies.

“My particular area of ​​research is looking at … the shape of galaxies, whether it’s these beautiful spirals, like our own Milky Way galaxy, or elliptical big hole-like galaxies, and galaxies have these different structures, these different shapes,” he said. .

Dr Cook’s research process is filled with questions.

“How can you go from a universe that started out as just a cloud of hydrogen gas, the simplest element in the universe and then allowed for 10 billion years of evolution, to have galaxies with a huge amount of structure and complexity?” he asked.

“How do you go from something so simple to something so complex?”

His role in developing an understanding of the evolution of galaxies is in measuring them, a task he says can be challenging.

“Measuring the number and measuring the shape of galaxies is a very important and quite difficult thing to do, so we spent a lot of time measuring them and … comparing them to different aspects of galaxies and trying to understand in the end, their evolution,” he said.

UWA astronomers eagerly await the reveal of the first images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.(Provided: Robin Cook)

Dr Cook’s research got a big boost last week when the world caught a glimpse of the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the space telescope’s largest and most powerful.

The image of this groundbreaking technology is a game changer for astrophysicists like Dr Cook.

“I plan to use this unprecedented imaging data to study galaxies that have never been seen before in the distant universe by measuring the morphology and characteristics of their stars,” he said.

“In astronomy, peering further into the universe also means looking further into the past, which is why JWST is so important for unraveling the mysteries of the early universe.”

Crush ideas

Measuring galaxies isn’t the only challenge in academia.

For many students who are new to the scientific field, the scientific method is a very rigorous process.

“While we try to propose accurate interpretations of the world around us, we also try to prove ourselves wrong,” said Dr Cook.

“It’s a constant process of coming up with ideas and then breaking them down. And it’s difficult for first-time students to do it.”

Dr Cook exhibits a 3D printed model of the Australian SKA Pathfinder telescope at Astrofest.(Provided: Robin Cook)

Dr Cook said the scientific method was the key to unlocking new knowledge and he was intrigued by the discoveries that came from using it.

“If we keep proving ourselves right, we’ll never actually learn anything new or interesting,” he says.

“We also found some really interesting things, so [astronomy is] a very good field to enter.”

Dr Cook, who is a young career researcher, said he still couldn’t believe the magic of being an astrophysicist.

“I kind of pinched myself, that I could go to work every day and … look at the universe and see things that no one has ever seen in their life before,” he said.

“I’m the only one who sees these unique things, it’s an amazing thing to do.”

Dr Cook explains the physics of radio astronomy to students at the Stargirls STEM camp.(Provided: Robin Cook)

In addition to researching never-before-seen objects in space, Dr Cook also has a keen interest in the history of astronomy, particularly the way Indigenous cultures have used it for tens of thousands of years.

“It’s very exciting to live here in Australia, where we have the oldest culture that continues to live here,” he said.

“Indigenous cultures use astronomy, not only as a storytelling technique, but actually as a tool for navigation, for timekeeping, for note-taking.”

“There’s a lot we can learn from people who have been doing this for, you know, 70,000 – 100,000+ years.”

And despite the vastness of the universe, which some may find frightening, Dr Cook says our place in the universe is “earthly”.

“All the atoms in the universe are made inside stars, both through the fusion of atoms into heavier atoms, like iron and oxygen and all the fun stuff we have around us, but also through spectacular supernova explosions when stars die,” he said.

“Knowing that we came from the stars in the universe and we are part of the universe itself is quite a humbling thought.

“We are part of this universe. We are not just in it.”

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