Coding the Cosmos

07/03/2024

We are looking forward to seeing all of you attending the University of Toronto camp tomorrow! Attendees, please check your email for the location, timing, and other relevant information. ✨🌌🛰

05/31/2024

Have you ever wondered how we study objects in space? 🌌🌠
Are you curious about how we have determined the age of the Universe?
Do you wonder how we detect Dark matter?
Are you interested in planets outside of our Solar System?
Are you considering going to university?

This summer, the University of Toronto and the Dunlap Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics in collaboration with McMaster University and Trent University are holding a workshops for students finishing grades 9 - 11 in the 2023/2024 school year which aims to provide a hands-on introduction to coding, lectures on cutting-edge astrophysics, and answers to your questions about university. The event will have talks from experts in the fields of astronomy and cosmology as well as an introduction to coding and the opportunity to use real telescope data to explore the Universe! There will also be a panel with current undergraduate and graduate students to answer all your questions about applying to and attending university. We will provide computers, transit fares, and lunch to all attendees.

Find more information and the registration link at:

This summer, the University of Toronto and the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics are holding workshops in collaboration with McMaster University and Trent University for grade 9 — 11 students which aims to provide a hands-on introduction to coding, cutting-edge astrophysics, and answ...

02/13/2024

We are expanding our programming and have rebranded to Coding the Cosmos. Stay tuned for more information!

Our amazing new logo is made by Eesha Das Gupta, check out more of her work at on Instagram! ✨

07/25/2023

We are looking forward to seeing all of you tomorrow! Please check your email for the location, timing, and other relevant information. ✨🌌🛰

07/21/2023

Taylor (she/her) is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on the birthplace of planets, the protoplanetary disk, and she is generally interested in how the protoplanetary disk can affect the planets that eventually form from it. Taylor did her Bachelors degree at Quest University Canada and, after her defence in a couple of weeks, will continue her work as a postdoctoral fellow at Lowell Observatory.

Taylor also works on various outreach and community initiatives and is a strong advocate for creating inclusive spaces within astronomy. She is the first in her family to attend University and the first to obtain a graduate degree. When she isn’t doing astronomy, she loves to spend her time outside with her rescue dog, Shanty. ☀️🪐🐶

07/19/2023

Meet Utkarsh Mali (he/him), one of the panellists for the “Pathways through Space and Time” panel at our upcoming workshop! Utkarsh just finished the first year of a Ph.D. program in Physics at the University of Toronto and the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics. As an astrophysics researcher, he’s interested in the physics of gravitational waves and statistical methods around them. Utkarsh is part of the LIGO collaboration, which is a leader in ongoing detections of gravitational waves. He’s also passionate about teaching and communicating science to the public, and he enjoys organizing and participating in various outreach and educational initiatives. Originally from Singapore, he spent the majority of his life there. Utkarsh has lived in 3 countries, and he has been a visible minority in every one of them. When he's not working he loves playing board games and being outdoors, but as a fun fact, he has never been canoeing! ✨🌄

07/17/2023

Meet Daniella Morrone (she/her, they/them), one of the panellists for the “Pathways through Space and Time” panel at our upcoming workshop! Daniella recently graduated with an Honours B.Sc. in Astronomy & Astrophysics from the University of Toronto, and is currently working with the Dunlap Institute’s Discover the Universe. Over the last five years as an undergraduate student, they did research on exoplanet detection and galaxy morphology, and did volunteer public outreach through the UofT astronomy department and other UofT initiatives. Now working in outreach through Discover the Universe, she is creating educational content for the April 8, 2024 Total Solar Eclipse. Daniella is part of the LGBTQ+ community, and they identify as genderfluid and pansexual. A fun fact: Daniella can (almost) quote the entire script of How to Train Your Dragon, their favourite movie! 🪐🌌🐉

Visit their website to learn more! https://daniellamorrone.github.io/

07/14/2023

Meet Bolin Fan (he/him), our lecturer on the Cosmic Microwave Background for our upcoming workshop! Bolin is a PhD candidate at the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto. He works on a bunch of image analysis projects applied to cosmology. Some of his projects include using machine learning to detect structures in the early universe as well as short-lived transient signals in the sky. He is very interested in how techniques used in different areas of science can be applied to each other. Bolin works with a group of wonderful biologists to use software for detecting things like supernovae to detect signals in the brain! Outside of work, he likes to set up terrariums for pets, like dart frogs and centipedes! 🌟🐸🌠

07/12/2023

Meet Sam Berek (she/her), our lecturer on stars and globular clusters for our upcoming workshop! Sam is a 3rd year PhD candidate at the University of Toronto’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics. She studies galaxy formation and evolution using globular clusters, which are gravitationally bound groups of thousands to millions of stars. Globular clusters contain some of the oldest stars in the universe and are present in almost all galaxies, so they can be used to help us understand what the universe looked like when first formed, billions of years ago.

Outside of her research, Sam is one of the co-presidents of the graduate astronomy student’s union. Before that, she was a member of the department’s training and mentoring committee. Outside of work, Sam loves to cook and bake, and (fun fact!) she’s growing a garden for the first time this summer! 🌠🌌