Credit: NASA/ESA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI)

Astrophysics

The DIFA - Astrophysics Sector is active in the fields of theoretical, computational and observational astrophysics, and of astronomical and space technology. The staff is involved in several international projects with world-class observing facilities and space missions (e.g. HST, ESO VLT, Chandra, XMM-Newton, Herschel, NuSTAR, ALMA, NOEMA, LOFAR, SKA, VLA / VLBI, Fermi, RadioAstron, Euclid, ATHENA, XRISM).

Local observing facilities, regularly used by researchers and students, include two optical telescopes (60 cm and 152 cm diameter) located in Loiano, and two radio telescopes managed by INAF-IRA: the Northern Cross, owned by the University of Bologna, and the VLBI 32m parabolic antenna. Computational activities benefit from a local parallel cluster owned and managed by DIFA and of close relations with CINECA and its supercomputing facilities.

All the scientific and teaching activities benefit from the several synergies within the unique environment at the Navile Campus, where other institutes for astrophysical research are also located: INAF-OAS, INAF-IRA, the ALMA Regional Center (ARC) and the headquarters of the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA).

Research lines

Projects
- Euclid Mission

Research labs
- Open Physics Hub

Settori ERC

PE9_3 Interstellar medium

PE9_6 Stars and stellar systems

PE9_7 The Galaxy

PE9_8 Formation and evolution of galaxies

PE9_9 Clusters of galaxies and large scale structures

PE9_10 High energy and particles astronomy – X-rays, cosmic rays, gamma rays, neutrinos

PE9_12 Dark matter, dark energy

PE9_14 Cosmology

PE9_16 Very large data bases: archiving, handling and analysis

PE9_17 Instrumentation - telescopes, detectors and techniques

People

Francesco Andreetto

PhD Student

keywords: Young Stars, Exoplanets, Protoplanetary Disks, Astronomy, Low Noise Amplifiers, Space Instrumentation, Cosmic Microwave

Marco Balboni

Research fellow

keywords: Galaxy clusters, Intra-Cluster Medium, radio and X-ray observations, interferometry, galaxy cluster magnetic field

Marco Baldi

Associate Professor

keywords: Theoretical and Computational Cosmology, Dark Energy, Dark Matter, Modified Gravity, Cosmological Simulations

Tommaso Bartalesi

PhD Student

keywords: Clusters of galaxies, Intra-cluster Medium, X-rays

Alessia Bartolomei

PhD Student

keywords: Stellar astrophysics, Spectroscopy, Galactic Bulge, Milky Way

Luca Beduzzi

PhD Student

Sirio Belli

Associate Professor

keywords: Galaxy Formation and Evolution, High-Redshift Galaxies, Optical and Near-Infrared Observations

Alessandro Benati

PhD Student

keywords: Cosmology, Radioastronomy, Galaxy Clusters, Large-scale Magnetic Fields, Non-thermal emission

Annalisa Bonafede

Associate Professor

keywords: Non-thermal processes, Clusters of galaxies, Large-scale magnetic fields, Radio observations

Nicola Borghi

Research fellow

Teaching tutor

keywords: Observational cosmology, Stellar Populations, Cosmic Chronometers, Cosmological probes, Gravitational Waves, Dark Energy

Lorenzo Briganti

PhD Student

keywords: Asteroseismology, Stellar structure and evolution, Blue Straggler Stars, Red Giant Stars

Fabrizio Brighenti

Associate Professor

keywords: galactic flows, galaxy clusters, fluid dynamics, elliptical galaxies

Giulia Brunelli

PhD Student

keywords: High energy astrophysics, Gamma-ray astrophysics, X-ray astrophysics, Pulsars, Pulsar Wind Nebulae, Pulsar halos

Marcella Brusa

Full Professor

keywords: AGN evolution, X-rays, multiwavelength surveys, Active Galactic Nuclei

Letizia Bugiani

PhD Student

Teaching tutor

keywords: Formation and evolution of galaxies, Quiescent galaxies, AGN feedback, High-redshift galaxies

Mario Cadelano

Fixed-term Researcher in Tenure Track L. 79/2022

keywords: Pulsars, Globular Clusters, Resolved Stellar Populations, Radioastronomy

Alex Ciabattoni

PhD Student

keywords: Gamma-ray Astrophyics, Gamma-Ray Bursts, Geant4 simulations, Cosmology

Matteo Cianfaglione

PhD Student

keywords: galaxy clusters, radioastronomy, non-thermal emission, diffuse radio emission

Andrea Cimatti

Full Professor

keywords: galaxy formation and evolution, cosmology, space sciences

Luca Ciotti

Full Professor

keywords: Astronomy, Theoretical astrophysics

Pedro Alexandre Coelho Cunha

Research fellow

keywords: spectroscopy, galaxy evolution, active galactic nuclei, machine learning, multi-wavelength survey, deep learning

Michele Costa

PhD Student

keywords: High redshift, Quasar, Interstellar Medium

Virginia Cuciti

Junior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: galaxy clusters, non-thermal emission, radioastronomy, Large scale structure

Daniele Dallacasa

Associate Professor

keywords: Clusters of Galaxies, Plasma Astrophysics, Radio galaxies, Radioastronomical techniques

Leonardo De Deo

PhD Student

keywords: Theoretical Astrophysics - Galactic dynamics - Jeans equations - Orbital anisotropy - Intracluster light - Inclusive

Emanuele De Rubeis

PhD Student

Teaching tutor

keywords: galaxy clusters, radio galaxies, radio astronomy, high performance computing, LOFAR

Giulia Despali

Junior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: dark matter, cosmology, gravitational lensing, numerical simulations

Greta Ettorre

PhD Student

keywords: Globular Clusters, Millisecond pulsar, Compact objects, Stellar populations

Francesco Rosario Ferraro

Full Professor

keywords: stellar evolution, dynamics, stellar systems, structure of the Galaxy

Sacha Gavino

Research fellow

Myriam Gitti

Associate Professor

keywords: clusters and groups of galaxies, intra-cluster medium, active galactic nuclei (AGN), AGN feedback, radio mini-halos,

Eric Giunchi

Research fellow

keywords: Star formation, Globular clusters, Galaxy tails, Galaxy clusters

Camilla Giusti

PhD Student

keywords: stellar evolution, stellar dynamics, stellar systems

Massimo Guidi

Research fellow

keywords: Galaxy Clustering, Large Scale Structure, Cosmology, Higher-Order Statistics

Barbara Lanzoni

Associate Professor

keywords: stellar systems, stellar evolution, stellar dynamics, Galaxy formation and evolution

Carmela Lardo

Associate Professor

keywords: Star Clusters, Stellar Evolution, Milky Way Formation and Evolution, Near-Field Cosmology, Local Group Dwarf Galaxies,

Giorgio Francesco Lesci

Research fellow

keywords: Observational Cosmology; Galaxy Clusters; Weak-lensing; Photometric Redshifts

Giuseppe Levi

Assistant professor

keywords: Silicon Photomultiplier, Astroparticle physics, SiPM, ZEUS, AMS-02, Neutrino

Martina Loriga

PhD Student

keywords: Stellar evolution, Globular Clusters, Photometry, Bulge, Stellar populations

Stefano Marchesi

Junior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: Active galactic nuclei, Supermassive black holes, Galaxy formation and evolution, High energy astrophysics

Federico Marinacci

Associate Professor

keywords: Numerical simulations, Cosmlogical simulations, Galaxy formation and evolution, Gas dynamics in galaxies, Feedback

Edoardo Martinelli

PhD Student

keywords: Cosmology, Dark Energy, Modified theories of gravity, N-body simulations of the LSS

Federico Marulli

Associate Professor

keywords: cosmology, astroinformatics, large-scale structure of the Universe, dark energy, dark matter, machine learning

Massimiliano Matteuzzi

Research fellow

Teaching tutor

keywords: asteroseismology, stellar models, theoretical astrophysics, galaxies formation and evolution

Alessandro Mazzi

Research fellow

keywords: Stellar populations, Solar neighborhood, Aterosismology, Milky Way, Local Group, Software develpment

Robert Benton Metcalf

Associate Professor

Andrea Miglio

Full Professor

keywords: stellar structure and evolution, asteroseismology, stellar populations, formation and evolution of the Milky Way

Michele Ennio Maria Moresco

Associate Professor

keywords: observational cosmology, gravitational waves, cosmic chronometers, large scale structure of the Universe, galaxy

Lauro Moscardini

Full Professor

keywords: cosmology, gravitational lensing, galaxy clusters, early universe, numerical cosmological simulations

Alessio Mucciarelli

Associate Professor

keywords: resolved stellar populations, chemical abundances, dwarf and irregular galaxies, globular clusters, stellar

Carlo Nipoti

Associate Professor

keywords: galaxies, clusters of galaxies, globular clusters, dark matter, stellar dynamics, astrophysical fluid dynamics,

Annalisa Pagliotta

PhD Student

keywords: magnetic fields, galaxy clusters, proto-clusters, non-thermal emission, polarisation

Cristina Pallanca

Senior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: Globular clusters, Millisecond pulsars, Intermediate massive black holes

Giulia Papini

PhD Student

keywords: galaxy formation and evolution, galaxy environment, dark matter, Euclid, MUSE spectroscopy

Silvia Pellegrini

Associate Professor

keywords: structure, formation and evolution of galaxies, interstellar medium, nuclear activity in galaxies, X-ray observations

Francesca Pozzi

Associate Professor

Salvatore Quai

Research fellow

keywords: Galaxy evolution, Optical-NIR spectroscopy and observations, Galaxy Interactions and Mergers

Veronica Roccatagliata

Junior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: star formation, planet formation, formation and dynamical evolution of young clusters, protoplanetary disks, debris

Massimiliano Romanello

Research fellow

keywords: Observational cosmology, large-scale structures, galaxy clusters, clustering, alternative cosmologies, Reionization

Anton Rudakovskyi

Research fellow

keywords: Galaxies, galaxy clusters, dark matter, galaxy formation

Matteo Sapori

PhD Student

keywords: Galaxy formation and evolution. Optical and Near Infrared observations. High redshift

Letizia Scaloni

PhD Student

Matteo Tagliazucchi

PhD Student

keywords: Gravitational Waves, Cosmology

Margherita Talia

Senior assistant professor (fixed-term)

keywords: spectroscopy, high-redshift, galaxy evolution, multi-wavelength suvey

Jeppe Sinkbaek Thomsen

PhD Student

keywords: Eclipsing binaries, Asteroseismology, Red giant stars

Elena Tomasetti

PhD Student

keywords: observational cosmology, cosmic chronometers, galaxy evolution, globular clusters

Greta Toni

PhD Student

keywords: galaxy clusters, galaxy evolution, photometric surveys, galaxy groups

Rachele Toniolo

PhD Student

Francesco Ubertosi

Research fellow

Teaching tutor

keywords: Galaxy clusters - thermal X-ray emission - intracluster medium - feeding and feedback of active supermassive black

Astrophysics

Research lines

Projects

Research labs

Settori ERC

People