Skip to ContentSkip to Navigation
About us Faculty of Science and Engineering News

Amina Helmi appointed as Deputy Scientific Director NOVA

07 August 2019

Amina Helmi will become Deputy Scientific director of the Dutch Research School for Astronomy (NOVA) on 1 October. Amina Helmi, Professor of Dynamics, structure and formation of the Milky Way at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, will fulfill this function in collaboration with the current Scientific Director Ewine van Dishoeck (Professor of Molecular astrophysics in Leiden, Kavli prize winner and President of the International Astronomical Union IAU ).

NOVA also welcomes Ronald Stark (currently still working at NWO) as new Executive Director from 1 September. NOVA Board Chairman Huub Röttgering (Director of Leiden Observatory, Leiden University) is delighted with the appointment of the two new members of the directorate: “It's great to see that NOVA will enter the future with such a strong team.” Director Ewine van Dishoeck : “With the arrival of Helmi and Stark, the strong link between top science and top instrumentation at NOVA remains guaranteed for the future.”

NOVA

The Netherlands Research School for Astronomy (NOVA) coordinates and stimulates university astronomy in the Netherlands through a joint research and instrumentation programme. The top research school combines the forces of astronomers at the universities of Amsterdam (UvA), Groningen (RUG), Leiden (UL) and Nijmegen (RU). NOVA works closely with NWO institutes SRON and ASTRON.

Amina Helmi

Amina Helmi is one of the founders of so-called galactic archeology: the reconstruction of the history of galaxies based on the current positions, movements and composition of stars. As an astronomical archaeologist, she searches for the remains of ancient galaxies in order to reconstruct the evolution of our Milky Way. Helmi manages to attract important grants for her research, including the NWO Vidi and Vici grants and an ERC Starting Grant. In addition, she has won several prestigious prizes. This year Helmi, who was born in Argentina, received the Spinoza prize, the highest distinction in Dutch science.

Amina Helmi photo: NWO/Studio Oostrum/Hollandse Hoogte
Amina Helmi photo: NWO/Studio Oostrum/Hollandse Hoogte
Last modified:15 August 2019 12.15 p.m.
View this page in: Nederlands

More news

  • 23 July 2024

    The chips of the future

    Our computers use an unnecessarily large amount of energy, and we are reaching the limits of our current technology. That is why CogniGron is working on new materials that mimic the way the brain computes, and Professor Tamalika Banerjee will...

  • 18 July 2024

    Smart robots to make smaller chips

    A robotic arm in a factory that repeatedly executes the same movement: that’s a thing of the past, states Ming Cao. Researchers of the University of Groningen are collaborating with high-tech companies to make production processes more autonomous.

  • 17 July 2024

    Veni-grants for ten researchers

    The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has awarded a Veni grant of up to €320,000 each to ten researchers of the University of Groningen and the UMCG. The Veni grants are designed for outstanding researchers who have recently gained a PhD.