Hello, and welcome to my website!

My name is Thomas J. Rennie and I'm a postdoctoral researcher at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.

My research mostly focuses on observing CMB foregrounds - which is emission from astronomical sources that sit in front of the cosmic microwave background (the echo of the Big Bang). You can find out about it by reading my research page.

Education

I studied for my undergraduate degree at the University of Manchester (UoM), starting in 2016 and graduating in 2020. As opposed to taking a separate batchelors and masters, I took an integrated masters course, graduating with an MPhys in Physics with Astrophysics after four years.

For my PhD I stayed in Manchester, studying under Prof. Clive Dickinson and Dr. Start Harper at the Jodrell Bank Center for Astrophysics (part of UoM). My thesis was titled The CO Mapping Array Project 30 GHz Galactic Plane Survey and was submitted after three years of study in 2023.

My Postdoctoral Studies

After my PhD I moved to Vancouver to begin my first postdoc position at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Here, I work in the experimental cosmology lab to support the comissioning of the Canadian Galactic Emission Mapper (CGEM) telescope a short drive away in Penticton.

Interests & Hobbies

When I'm not working on the universe at large, you'll often find me behind a camera, on the ski slopes or with some combination of both!

I'm a keen ammateur photographer, always looking for interesting perspectives and new ways to capture the places I travel. I find photography allows me to slow down and really appreciate the details that might otherwise go unnoticed, but that are quite interesting when you start noticing them.

Lately, I've also recently picked up skiing. I've really been enjoying the challenge of improving my technique, going for harder runs and spending more time in the mountains that surround Vancouver.