The Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics (WCA) is delighted to welcome three exceptional early-career researchers who have chosen to bring prestigious national fellowship awards to Waterloo.
This year, Dr. David Dayi Li, Dr. Syeda Lammin Ahad, and Dr. Nicholas Kern join the WCA after securing highly competitive fellowship support. Drs. Li and Ahad were awarded the new Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA), while Dr. Kerns brings a five-year SKA Fellowship to Waterloo. They join two other recent fellowship award scholars, Banting Postdoctoral Fellows Dr. Ian Roberts and Dr. Emily Deibert.
Their arrival reflects the WCA's success in attracting outstanding researchers whose work spans some of the most exciting areas of modern astrophysics, from galaxy evolution and cosmology to exoplanets, astronomical surveys, and advanced statistical methods.
Dr. David Dayi Li, who began his fellowship in September 2026, is a joint WCA and Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science Postdoctoral Researcher. His work sits at the intersection of astrophysics, cosmology, and statistics, where he develops advanced Bayesian and computational methods to unlock insights from increasingly complex astronomical datasets. His research enables more efficient and robust investigations into some of the Universe's most fundamental questions.
Dr. Syeda Lammin Ahad, who will take up her CPRA fellowship in December 2026, studies the formation and evolution of galaxies and galaxy clusters, the largest gravitationally bound structures in the Universe. By combining cosmological simulations with data from major astronomical surveys, she investigates how galaxy clusters grow over cosmic time and how they shape the evolution of the galaxies they contain.
Dr. Nick Kern will join the WCA in January 2027 with a five-year SKA Fellowship supporting his research in radio astronomy and cosmology. Working at the intersection of high-redshift astrophysics, radio astronomy, and machine learning, Dr. Kern develops new techniques to uncover faint signals from the early Universe. His work will help advance the scientific goals of the Square Kilometre Array and deepen our understanding of the first stars and galaxies.
Dr. Ian Roberts was awarded a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship in August 2023 and studies how galaxies evolve in different environments throughout the Universe, particularly within massive galaxy clusters. His research examines the processes that influence and ultimately shut down star formation in galaxies, particularly within massive galaxy clusters. By combining observations across multiple wavelengths, he is helping to reveal how interactions between galaxies and their surroundings shape their long-term evolution.
In March 2026, Dr. Emily Deibert joined WCA as a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow, where she investigates the atmospheres of planets beyond our solar system. Using data from some of the world's most powerful telescopes, she studies the composition, structure, and dynamics of exoplanet atmospheres, with a particular focus on ultra-hot Jupiters. Her work is providing new insights into how these distant worlds form and evolve.
Together, these researchers bring an exciting range of expertise, perspectives, and ideas to the Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics. We are thrilled to welcome David, Lammim, and Nick to the WCA community and to see our cohort of nationally funded postdoctoral researchers continue to grow alongside Ian and Emily. Their decision to bring these prestigious fellowships to Waterloo reflects not only their own outstanding accomplishments, but also the collaborative and supportive research environment that makes WCA a place where early-career scholars can thrive. We look forward to the discoveries, collaborations, and contributions they will make in the years ahead!