An astronomical riddle

Her discovery will deepen our understanding of how stars and galaxies evolved in the universe’s early days, and it’s nothing short of extraordinary that a 23-year-old physics student is contributing research of such magnitude.

Meet Chamilla and learn more about her dreams and daily life as a young astrophysicist.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of looking up at the night sky – gazing out into the infinite universe,” says Chamilla, who initially had a keen interest in quantum physics when she began her university studies. But her passion quickly shifted as she set her sights on the stars.

“As I delved deeper, I realized just how thrilling and captivating this field truly is, and how many questions remain unanswered out there. That’s probably how I ended up here,” Chamilla reflects, now affiliated with the DNRF center, DAWN.

At DAWN, Chamilla and her colleagues have access to data from the James Webb Space Telescope, which provided the key data for her groundbreaking discovery. The telescope orbits 1.5 million kilometers from Earth, peering into the most distant galaxies, and its mission is to expand our understanding of how the universe began.

“I entered the field at an exciting time because, just as I was starting to embrace astrophysics as my path, the James Webb telescope was launched. It’s truly unique that, as a student, I have the opportunity to analyze such extraordinary data,” Chamilla shares with enthusiasm.