Hi! My name is Mario Francisco Llerena Oña. I was born in Ecuador in its capital, Quito (the highest city with a population > 2 million people), in the middle of giant mountains and scary volcanoes.

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I got my bachelor's degree in Physics at Escuela Politecnica Nacional, Quito in 2016. Before graduating, I was a teaching assistant in the Science Faculty for a couple of courses and also, I started to work at Observatorio Astronomico de Quito, participating in research projects and outreach activities. I also participated in a few schools/workshops/conferences that make my heart turn into Astronomy.  

 

In 2019, I started my Ph.D. in Astronomy at Universidad de La Serena (ULS), Chile (I got a Chilean government scholarship). Since then, I have been a PhD student working in the ULS Formevol group under the orientation of Dr. Ricardo Amorín. A detailed CV can be found here.

 

In Science, I am interested in understanding the early phases of the formation and evolution of galaxies in the Universe. In particular, how the properties of the gas inside them impact their growth and chemical enrichment. Also, I study low-mass galaxies with extreme properties to find out their connection with the sources of reionization at z>6. 

 

For my current research project, I use data from large telescopes (VLT, Keck) to explore ultradeep spectra of star-forming galaxies at Cosmic Noon (which correspond to the 2-3 Gyr after the Big Bang) to constraint their properties combining information from the rest-UV and rest-optical. You can find more info here.

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Besides science, I enjoy watching movies (the older the movie, the better), but lately I have also have found a passion for watching series :). I like cats but am allergic to cats. I like hiking and am a cold lover.