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Our Team

Kamryn Diehl

Kamryn Diehl

President

Kamryn is a Masters student studying botany after finishing a combined major in physics, computer science, and biology. Her interest in astronomy stemmed from watching NOVA documentaries with her Dad as a kid, and she continues to appreciate space by star-gazing whenever Vancouver’s infamously clear sky permits it. When it's cloudy out, Kamryn enjoys gardening, playing video games, and drumming.

Christa Agoawike

Christa Agoawike

Secretary

Christa is a third year biology and oceanography major hoping to minor in health and society. They’ve been interested in astronomy ever since they learned what a black hole was! In their free time, they like to watch anime, read manhwas and geek out about Greco-Roman mythology.

Nic Zaparniuk

Nic Zaparniuk

Observations Director

Nic is a third-year physics and astronomy student and loves any chance to talk about space and anything in between. He really enjoys finding ways to stack objects as high as possible, but also enjoys looking at stars, playing piano, and reading.

Jen Jon Ma

Jen Jon Ma

Social Director

Jen Jon is a fourth-year materials engineering student who aspires to build a career in the space industry. His lifelong passion for space exploration began on the bridge of the Enterprise, and continues today through his satellite student design team. When free, Jen Jon likes to blow things up (in video games), watch movies and TV, and hang out with friends.

Devin Kettle

Devin Kettle

Equipment Coordinator & Website Manager

Devin is a staff member at UBC. His love for astronomy was sparked by seeing the Milky Way for the first time while camping as a kid on a clear, dark summer's night in the Kootenays. That moment of immense perspective has stuck with him since then. He enjoys camping, playing Ultimate, staring into space, and being sat upon by his cats.

Dhawal Rathore

Dhawal Rathore

General Officer

Dhawal is a third-year student studying Computer Science and Statistics. He's been in love with astronomy since he was 4 years old when he looked at Uranus(hehe) at a observatory. Apart from stargazing and geeking out about telescopes, you might find Dhawal playing video games, cooking or watching sci-fi movies.

Justin Lee

Justin Lee

Advisor

Justin is a UBC alumnus (BSc 2016) and staff. He was an exec in the UBC Astronomy Club from 2011-2016 and co-president of the club in 2013, and enjoyed running observation nights for the UBC community to see the stars and planets through a telescope, often for the first time. He spends most of his free time climbing and running in the mountains.

Vlad Grecu

Vlad Grecu

President

Vlad Grecu is a third-year student in the Faculty of Science studying physics and astronomy. His passion for astronomy stemmed in kindergarten from questions about why the night is dark, and from there stretched outwards to discover increasingly vast, occasionally puzzling concepts. When not learning more about astronomy (or studying), his hobbies include playing soccer, tennis, and video games, reading sci-fi and fantasy books, and following Formula 1.

Chantal Hemmann

Chantal Hemmann

Academic Director

Chantal is a second-year science student with an endless fascination for space. She greatly enjoys laughing at her friends when they point to Jupiter in the night sky and ask her what star it is, but also spends a fair amount of time reading, playing the piano, and wishing she were stargazing.

Andrea Schildhorn

Andrea Schildhorn

Outreach Director

Andrea is a second year undergraduate student at UBC. She stumbled across astronomy in her first year and thought to herself: “Yeah, this is it.” Andrea enjoys going outside, playing guitar and finding cool rocks on the beach.

Sharon Chan

Sharon Chan

Astrophotography Coordinator

While stressing out with school work on a daily basis, Sharon enjoys taking out her refractor at night to take pretty pictures as a coping mechanism.

Aakash Anantharaman

Aakash Anantharaman

Academic Apprentice

Aakash is a third year student at UBC who is currently in the combined physics and astronomy program. He is a an astrophysics enthusiast with a keen interest in the subject, developed from his first (of countless) viewings of the movie Interstellar. He hopes to eventually find himself working at an observatory or in academia. In his free time one can find him working on sketches or reading novels and manga.

Elizabeth Elgood

Elizabeth Elgood

General Officer

Liz’s favourite moon phase is Waning Crescent. Her favourite colour is pink. She enjoys reading, singing, museum-going, art galleries, and the beach (especially at night).

Satyam Priyadarshi

Satyam Priyadarshi

Advisor

Satyam is a Research Assistant (Data Scientist), in the Department of Botany at UBC. He graduated with a BSc Combined Honours in Physics & Astronomy in May 2023 and is now on a mission to bring the 'fun' back into 'fundamentals' of the cosmos. His cosmic infatuation ignited early, probably when he realized Pluto wasn’t just a Disney character and 'dark matter' wasn't just his laundry pile. He went from 'Hello World!' to 'Hello Universe!' by reading books, binge-watching Cosmos and StarTalk, and gate-crashing starry soirées like he owned the place, much like he did with the club.

Jaaron Muters

Jaaron Muters

Treasurer

Jaaron is a 4th year Mathematics major, just going with the flow and trying to figure out what he wants to do for a career. He's been in love with astronomy as a hobby since he was introduced to the concept of black holes in third grade, and has been an executive with the club for the past 2 years. In his free time, Jaaron enjoys playing SSBM, soccer, and volleyball, along with studying computer science and jazz piano. Feel free to hit him up with any music suggestions or astronomy questions!

Ayan Araleh

Ayan Araleh

Administrative Director

Ayan is a second year in the Faculty of Science looking to pursue a combined Physics and Astronomy degree. She is a huge space nerd, loves anything Sci-Fi and F1 related.

Gurveen Kaur

Gurveen Kaur

Promotions Director

Gurveen is a fourth year Arts student who doesn’t know much, except that she loves to look up at the sky and wonder how she ended up on this planet. She has hundreds of questions about everything in the Universe and would love to know all the answers. Find her at club events to talk to her and maybe have some fun conversations about our beautiful Universe.

Sean Heakes

Sean Heakes

Equipment Coordinator

During the daytime Sean is a third year Astronomy undergrad. At night Sean travels between stars faster than the speed of light and visits galaxies, planetary nebulae, star clusters, and planets within our own solar system.

Rozy Etaghene

Rozy Etaghene

Promotions Apprentice

Rozy is a second-year Applied Biology student who’s love for space came from watching Interstellar in Grade 11 physics. (Don’t ask how many times she’s watched it since). She loves to sit and look up at the stars while listening to music when she can’t sleep. One of Rozy’s favorite YouTube things is the space related rabbit-hole she’ll find herself down at 2 am...Sleep is for the weak (jk).

Saloni Maniar

Saloni Maniar

General Officer

Saloni is a third-year Physics and Astronomy student with her head in the stars and her heart in the mysteries of the cosmos. Her fascination with the universe started the night she witnessed her first Geminid meteor shower, igniting a love for gravitational waves, radio astronomy, and cosmology. When she is not gazing up at the night sky, you will find her deep into mystery movies or dreaming up ways to blend her two passions: art and science. An enthusiast of languages and music, she is always exploring new ways to harmonise creativity and cosmic curiosity.

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