Gabriel Paul

Profile

I completed my undergraduate degree in astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Nairobi in 2023, where my project focused on X-ray fluorescence analysis of trace elements in human tissue for cancer diagnosis. After my undergraduate, I then participated in the DARA & KOTI basic training program in radio and optical astronomy, as well as computational skills, delivered in Kenya and South Africa.

Before starting my postgraduate research, I completed a 6-months volunteership (remotely) program at the University of Western Cape in South Africa under the supervision of Professor Lerothodi Leeuw. During this period, I extracted radio sources and wrote corresponding fits catalog from MeerKAT SGP radio sky survey in one of the Herschel’s protocluster fields (G014). I conducted multi-wavelength analysis of radio galaxies using MeerKAT and Herschel’s data to investigate, co-relate and compare their physical properties and later matched the radio sources with counterparts in IR Herschel and SHARKS Ks catalogs. Finally, I produced fits file cutouts from multi-wavelength data based on different analytical parameters with an aim of understanding galaxy evolution in MeerKAT observations of Herschel protocluster candidates through statistical and visual classification of bright radio sources. To achieve this, I utilized tools like PyBDSF, TOPCAT, DS9 and Python.

I am now undertaking my master’s at the University of Leeds, researching on paving the way for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) to observe planet-forming disks, under the supervision of Dr John Ilee and Professor Melvin Hoare. My work involves laying the ground for the first SKA observations of protoplanetary discs, which are believed to be the birthplaces of planets, with a deeper understanding of planet formation. I do this by combining hydrodynamic models of discs and analysis of distribution of cm-sized ‘pebbles’ in these discs at different evolutionary stages to characterise the growth and evolution of the raw materials for planet formation. Using computer models, I will predict the appearance of the discs at cm-wavelengths, including contributions to the emission from jets and winds. The ultimate aim is to lay the groundwork for the first SKA observations and help determine the best observing strategies for this next-generation instrument.

Research interests

• Protoplanetary Disks
• Planet Formation

Qualifications

• 2026 – Present: MSc. in Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
• 2019 – 2023: BSc. in Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya