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Exploring the Universe to Strengthen Our Future
The Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics (WCA) is home to world-leading researchers who explore the deepest mysteries of the cosmos. Through major international collaborations such as the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), Euclid space telescope, and the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT), WCA scientists study dark matter, cosmic acceleration, black holes and the evolution of galaxies, revealing insights that reshape our understanding of the universe and our place within it.
Using advanced simulations, powerful data science and global partnerships, the WCA drives innovation across Waterloo’s Global Futures in technology, society, economy and sustainability. Breakthroughs in astrophysics fuel advances in computing, influence climate and Earth system modelling, and contribute to new tools and technologies that strengthen communities and future industries.
The WCA embodies Waterloo’s commitment to curiosity, exploration and bold thinking. It invites us to look beyond our horizon and imagine new possibilities for life on our planet.
Join us as we explore the universe and illuminate a brighter future for all.
Top Research Goals of the Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics
The Universe is our laboratory.
Dr. Percival's vision shapes the core mission of the WCA: to answer the biggest questions humanity can ask about the cosmos.
1. What is Dark Energy?
WCA researchers, including Will Percival and collaborators working on DESI and Euclid, are mapping the expansion of the Universe to uncover the nature of dark energy and understand why cosmic acceleration is increasing.
2. What is Dark Matter?
Scientists at WCA investigate dark matter’s distribution and behavior across the cosmos, using galaxy surveys, simulations, and gravitational lensing to unveil the invisible scaffolding of the Universe.
3. How do galaxies form and evolve?
Researchers such as Ana Ennis and colleagues use advanced simulations and data from global sky surveys to understand how galaxies emerge from primordial matter, how they grow, and how their structures change over billions of years.
4. What happens at the edge of a black hole?
Led by Avery Broderick, WCA scientists play a major role in the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, revealing the physics of supermassive black holes, testing general relativity, and exploring how black holes shape galaxy evolution.
5. How do cosmic structures connect the Universe?
WCA teams study the cosmic web, galaxy clusters, and the large-scale scaffolding of matter to understand how the Universe builds complexity from simple beginnings.
6. How can the Universe inspire new technologies and models on Earth?
Astrophysical modelling informs innovations in computation, imaging, data processing, and even climate and Earth system modelling, extending the impact of WCA far beyond astronomy.
Read updates about Waterloo's recent astrophysics research
Mapping the universe just got easier
As astronomical data sets get increasingly larger and complex, a new emulator will allow cosmology researchers to analyze huge data sets with just a laptop and a few hours.
Even black holes have bad hair days
New EHT images reveal unexpected polarization flips at M87* that are giving scientists insight into the year-by-year evolution of a supermassive black hole’s ring
Dr. Lisa Dang and an international team of researchers are leading investigations on lava planets, tidally locked planets with one side harbouring an ocean of molten rock, while the other side is permanently dark, using data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)
New data from DESI is a goldmine for observational cosmology
Scientists working with the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument lead data analysis further testing general relativity by measuring how large structures in the universe, like groups of galaxies, are being pulled together.
Together, we reignite possibility.
Your support for the WCA will expand the universe of knowledge, and ignite a sense of wonder in society.