Hi, my name is Harini, and I’m a student volunteer at the National Astronomy Meeting (NAM), which is taking place in Durham this year.
I’ve just finished my third year of a Physics and Astronomy degree at Durham. This year I completed a project about using data from Type 1a Supernova to measure the shape and dark matter content of the universe, and next year for my dissertation I am going to be studying dark bar formations in galaxies and what implications that has on the search for dark matter.
Why take part in NAM?
When I saw that the Physics department was looking for student volunteers for NAM, I knew I had to get involved. Where else would I be able to meet so many renowned astrophysicists and be able to hear them talk about what they’re most passionate about?
What does NAM mean to me?
For me, NAM is an opportunity to see what my future could hold. I’m hoping that I can talk to some of the speakers and get some insight into what life as an astronomy researcher is like. It’s also an opportunity for me to see what’s at the forefront of astronomy research.
The exhibit I’m most excited to see is the Moon Palace, mostly because it sounds cute :). I’m also looking forward to the talks about barred galaxies, which is most interesting to me because it relates to what I’m doing for my dissertation, so I’m sure I’ll have a lot of questions to ask the speakers.
My first day at NAM
I was a room curator on the first day of NAM, which meant that I had to monitor the Zoom livestreams of each talk. My biggest takeaway from doing this is that the tech has a mind of its own, and microphones can be very temperamental. But in all seriousness, it was very inspiring to see people give their talks.
I didn’t fully understand everything they were talking about, but it’s always impressive to see people so knowledgeable in their specialist area. It also made me imagine myself giving a talk one day in the future: I think if I did become a researcher, I would want my specialist subject to be the search for dark matter in the universe. It’s interested me ever since I was fifteen years old and my GCSE Physics teacher started going on a tangent about it in the middle of a lesson. So you never know, maybe in a few years you’ll see me again at NAM, but as a speaker myself!
So far, NAM has been great, and I’d recommend visiting the meeting in the future.
Discover more
Find out more on the NAM website
Discover more about Physics and Mathematical Sciences at Durham University, including how to study with us.
Explore Durham University’s astronomical research.
