🚀 Antonis Georgakakis is staff researcher at the National Observatory of Athens and interested in understanding the formation of supermassive black holes at the centres of galaxies. Within AHEAD2020 he contributes to the development of an X-ray source detection code that uses both spatial and temporal information.

How do you describe your journey in astronomy so far?

📣 Exciting! Since my PhD I have analysed observations at nearly all wavelengths, from X-rays to far-infared and radio, to find supermassive black holes in the Universe that experience accretion events, study their properties and develop models to extract physical conclusions about their formation and evolution.

Why did you choose to study astrophysics?

📣 I find fascinating that in astronomy it is possible to develop models to extract information from noisy observations and learn about how Nature works.

Do you have a favorite scientific theory?

📣 The mounting evidence for the existence of extraterrestrial life and the prospects of finding it in our own planetary system within the next few decades.

Why is AHEAD2020 important to you?

📣 I am very interested in novel analysis and modeling techniques that allow the optimal extraction of signal from observations.

What is the best word describing Astronomy?

📣 “Learning”

#AHEAD2020 is a consortium aimed at integrating and opening research infrastructures across Europe for High Energy Astrophysics, Multi-Messenger Astronomy and also Gravitational Waves. Discover more about AHEAD2020 and the Hot and Energetic Universe by watching this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbT4o3-FRII&ab_channel=AHEAD2020