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Summary

Motivated by the current state of the profession and recommendations from the ASTRO2020 decadal survey, the Cosmic Pathfinders Program is a student-focused professional development and STEM engagement program that provides an interface between interested undergraduate, graduate students, and NASA Astrophysics activities exhibited by the national network of astronomers, astrophysicists, and space-scientists connected to NASA Astrophysics and the Cosmic Origins/Physics of the Cosmos program offices. The Cosmic Pathfinders Program focuses on a broad range of astrophysics and cosmology science relevant to the study of the history and evolution of galaxies and supermassive black holes, extragalactic astrophysical phenomena, stellar & elemental evolution, early formation and evolution of planetary systems, Archaeology of the Milky Way and its neighbors. Along with these thematic science categories, technology and communications relevant to the broader astrophysics community will be included. 
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. ”
— Amelia Earhart

With a growing number of underserved and underrepresented students leaving the astrophysics fields, the purpose of this newly established group is to create a space for professional development of undergraduate and graduate students, exposing them to programmatic structures aligned with animating the science. Directly relating to current efforts centered around inclusion, and removes barriers associated with traditional application and/or proposal processes for engagement with the broader NASA Astrophysics & STEM research community.

Scope of the Cosmic Pathfinders Program:

The Cosmic Pathfinders Program will be executed utilizing a unique model that aims to spark an invigorated interest in its members pursuing STEM career pathways that support a developing and growing space-science/astrophysics industry. The Cosmic Pathfinders Program scope & activities will be categorized under the following:

One of the main products of the Cosmic PathfindersProgram will be produced as a result of the Cosmic Chatter roundtable discussions mentioned above in the actions & activities of the Cosmic Pathfinders Program will be a monthly newsletter sent out to the student email list, along with being listed on a dedicated page for the Cosmic Pathfinders Program. The programmatic goal of these discussions are to explore the gaps in the “leaky pipe” model of retention in astrophysics. These conversations will also encourage cross-division science: Astro + Helio, Astro + Planetary, Astro + Bio/Phys, Astro + Earth, Astro + Astro (cross-lab/mission interaction, ex. AGN, black holes, galaxy evolution, dark matter, etc.).

The program leadership will include a combination of NASA scientists (Dr. Ronald Gamble) and selected students at the junior undergraduate level and higher. The program’s student leaders will have the opportunity to represent the cosmic explorers and present relevant work in astrophysics at conferences and workshops directly aligned with the COR/PhysCOS strategic planning.

  • My name is Jordan Forman (she/her), and I'm a Postbaccalaureate (Postbac) Researcher at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. I graduated with my B.S. in Astronomy & Astrophysics from the Florida Institute of Technology in 2022, and I've held three consecutive internships with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center starting in Summer 2021. Currently my research focuses on studying the gamma-ray emissions of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) and more specifically blazars, using data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT), which is a part of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope.

    I'm very interested in continuing to study Active Galactic Nuclei, although I'm also interested in learning more about galactic evolution and its relation to AGN. My personal interests include swimming, roller skating, playing ukulele & piano, singing, caring for my 20+ plants, and learning German.

  • Amethyst S. Barnes is an Afro-Latina Astrophysicist who, as a first generation college graduate, received her B.S. degree in Astronomy and Astrophysics from Florida Institute of Technology. Amethyst previously interned at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center working with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Project Science Team and focused on weak gravitational lensing simulations. She will be continuing her work with the Roman Space Telescope at Goddard as a post-baccalaureate researcher. Her areas of interest include dark matter/dark energy and gravitational lensing. With a variety of hobbies, some things Amethyst enjoys doing in her free time include cooking/baking, gardening, making art, singing, and spending time with her friends and family.

  • I'm Isiah Holt (he/him)! and originally from West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. I finished my undergraduate studies in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and the Department of Physics at the Pennsylvania State University. I am currently a doctoral student in the department of astronomy at the University of Maryland and a NASA Pathways Intern at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, studying neutron stars using the X-ray telescope Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER).

    I am really interested in neutron stars(!!), high-energy astrophysics, computational astrophysics (python, C), and radio astronomy research. My other interests include gaming, cooking, learning Japanese, and stargazing.

  • I am a 3rd year doctoral student in the Department of Astronomy at the University of Maryland-College Park and at NASA Goddard. I graduated from the California Institute of Technology in 2021 with a B.S. in Astrophysics, and also played college basketball there. My research focuses on understanding core-collapse supernovae and gamma-ray bursts from an observational perspective. I utilize ground (Zwicky Transient Facility, Lowell Discovery Telescope, etc.) and space-based telescopes (Swift, Hubble, etc.) to paint a multi-wavelength, panchromatic picture of these explosive and energetic phenomena.

Actions & Activities

Cosmic Pathfinders Program will have a series of roundtable discussions that put emphasis on prominent issues and boundaries that students face in today’s professional landscape across STEM. These roundtable discussions are aimed at eliminating the network-dependency on surmounting these prevalent issues. Discussions will be moderated by program leaders and contributions will be made by a panel of students invited to give their thoughts and share experiences on the current topic of discussion.

These topical (subject) areas covered in the group will then be discussed, developed, and acted upon throughout the tenure of student members as they engage in the Cosmic Pathfinders Program.

The Cosmic Chatter Roundtable

The Cosmic Chatter roundtable discussions will take on an informal fireside chat format offering a “NASA endorsed” space for students to put further emphasis on their immediate needs for professional growth and development. A list of invited speakers for these roundtable discussions will be maintained that will include a variety of professionals and industry representatives that cover the following topics listed below.

Topical areas of the Cosmic Pathfinders include:

  • Imposter Syndrome

  • Career Navigation

  • Conference Participation

  • Belonging

Cosmic Pathfinders Program Statement of Interest Form

Cosmic Pathfinders Statement of Interest Form

If you would like to join the Cosmic Pathfinders Program, you can also follow the link below for the sign up form.