About Me

I am a PhD student of astrophysics at Trinity College Dublin. My research is focused on the atmospheres of extrasolar planets – fascinating objects outside of our Solar System. This topic captivated me during high school and I have been studying it ever since. However, it is not the only thing I have dedicated my time to. I was active in scientific outreach and worked with high school students talented in physics and astronomy.

On this webpage I want to share with you my work and activities. Alongside the science and work related stuff I will also share a little bit of my personal experience from travelling and living abroad.

Personal Info

I was born in 1996 in Žiar nad Hronom, a small city close to the geographical center of Europe. I grew up in Kysucké Nové Mesto in the north of Slovakia where I attended elementary school. I did my high school studies at Gymnázium, Veľká okružná 22 in Žilina, where I attended a mathematics-focused class. While in elementary and high school, I participated in many science competitions, math and physics olympiads, and astronomical events.

I also participated in the astronomical club at our local observatory – The Regional Observatory in Žilina, located in my hometown. These activities helped me to decide on what I want to focus on in my career.

After high school I moved to Prague, the Czech Republic, where I started my bachelor’s studies in General Physics at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of Charles University. Even though I like math, I struggled quite a bit with it during my studies. In my second year, I decided to change my study subject to Applied Physics with a focus on Applied Meteorology.

At the same time I joined the newly created Exoplanetary group at the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences under the supervision of Dr. Petr Kabáth. There I was observing exoplanetary candidates discovered by the Kepler space telescope using the 2-meter Perek telescope at the Ondřejov Observatory.

While at the university, I actively participated in organizing FYKOS, which I also lead for some time. I planned to continue to study a Master's in astronomy. However, with a Bachelor's in applied physics, it was not directly possible. That is why I chose to pursue a Master's degree in education of Math and Physics - a dual study at the same faculty. Thanks to this, upon completion of the degree, I became an official Math and Physics teacher. During the studies I was teaching Math at one of Prague's high schools for 2 and a half years (I started just before the COVID-19 pandemic).

I truly consider myself a lucky man, as I found the love of my life and got married. As this happened before finishing my university studies, we planned our future togehter. We both decided to pursue our scientific careers (my wife is a physicist as well). However, a couple of researchers are inevitably dealing with a two-body problem - looking for two PhD positions geographicaly close to each other. It took some time, during which I did a half-year-long internship at the PR office at the Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences.

After more than a year of searching and applying, we were able to start our PhD - me in astrophysics at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, and my wife in nanoparticle physics at the University of Barcelona. If you do not find these two locations geograhicaly close, you are not alone. But thanks to cheap Ryanair and Vueling flights, it is closer than one would expect. So, we officially moved to Sabadell in Spain, and I started my PhD full of exoplanets and travelling. To read more about my research or my travels, follow the linked pages.

Hobbies & Interests

To be continued...