ZTF Summer Students
Meet the young people explore the dymanic universe with us
Riti Agarwal
Project: Exploring anomaly detection using topological data analysis techniques with ZTF time series
I chose a ZTF summer project because I wanted to apply machine learning to a different field, and being interested in astrophysics, ZTF seemed to be a perfect choice. I am super happy with my project so far, I have had to opportunity to learn a lot not just in ML but also in other fields. I aspire to integrate this learning in ML towards multiple projects in the future that can have meaningful impact.
Soumyadeep Bhattacharjee
Project: Technique for discovery of white dwarfs with transitary planerary debris in ZTF
Hello, I am Soumyadeep Bhattacharjee from India, SURF student of Prof. Shrinivas Kulkarni and Dr. Zachary Vanderbosch, working in the ZTF group. I have always wanted to explore various areas of astronomy and astrophysics and working in the ZTF group has been a great learning experience for me, introducing me to optical astronomy and to the special type of white dwarf system (white dwarf with transiting planetary debris) that my project is based on. I consider myself fortunate, having got the opportunity to conduct research under the guidance of people who are experts in their respective fields, and the experience has been wonderful. I aspire to be a researcher in the field of astronomy and astrophysics in the future, and the research project this summer, besides serving as a training for me to move forward with my aspiration, has also increased my passion for the subject many-folds.
Robert Senzel
Project: Exploring the diversity of Type Ia supernova environments
I chose to do a summer project with ZTF due to my fascination for cosmology. My experience working with the group has been fantastic. Everyone is very helpful, and I have learned a lot. I hope to be able to continue my education and go into astrophysics research.
Tam Man Shuen
Project: Searching binary central stars in planetary nebulae with ZTF
I was born and grew up in Hong Kong. After starting my physics undergraduate degree, I have been involved in various local science educational work, especially in astronomy. With the experience of working with other scientists, I found myself more eager to take part in astronomy research. I am very delighted to participate in the ZTF summer project and my supervisors are very supportive!
Cason Shepard
Project: Developing a monitoring system for identifying anomalous photometric behavior from ZTF nightly data
I chose a ZTF summer project to look into the world of astronomy and see if this is something I want to pursue in my academics. In the future, I hope to develop best-practice laws and guidelines around machine learning and AI.
Anika Arora
Project: Combining Data Science, STEM, and Astronomy with Android App ZARTH
The intersection of computer science and astronomy is a fascinating field. Helping develop a mobile app using ZTF's data has given me the opportunity to explore one of its many applications. I am beyond excited for the final product of my project and hope to continue more interdisciplinary research with computer science and astronomy in the future.
Leo Yang
Project: Fritz development for multi-messenger astrophysics
I chose a ZTF summer project because I am interested in the applications of computer science and software development to other fields. I am currently working on developing Fritz/SkyPortal in various MMA-related aspects. I am happy with the work I've accomplished so far and it has been great to learn more about astronomy and astrophysics. I aspire to be a software engineer in the future.
Randy Ngo
Project: Hardware accelerated inferencing on alert streams using Edge TPUs
ZTF appealed to me due to the work related with visual imaging and machine learning. So far I have had a positive experience as the extensive documentation on previous work has made it easy to contribute. In the future I hope to continue doing computational work that leads to more extraterrestrial discoveries.
Anna Grace Ulses
Project: Constraining the early light curves of Type Ia supernovae
I chose a ZTF summer project to learn more about the ongoing research in supernovae, and to meet professionals in this field. So far, the project has exceeded expectations and I'm delighted I was accepted. In the future I hope to branch out into planetary science research in order to study the geological history of Earth.
