Welcome To My World. 

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Hello! I am Nicole Firestone, and I would like to personally welcome you to my site! I am a final year PhD Candidate in Astrophysics at Rutgers University working with Eric Gawiser to study star forming (Lyman Alpha Emitting) galaxies that existed in the early Universe. By studying these "galaxies far-far away", we are able to piece together the origin story of our own Milky Way galaxy and better understand how our Universe evolved over time. In addition to my research, I am deeply committed to mentorship, science communication, and equitability in scientific spaces. I carry these values in my roles as a Graduate Research Fellow for the National Science Foundation, the demonstrations coordinator for our high school physics outreach program at Rutgers, and a co-facilitator for Project BUILD (a leadership development program for research mentors and advisors). Additionally, I am a proud member of the disability community and serve as a rare disease advocate and the immediate past President of the Rutgers Minorities in Physics and Astronomy group. I aim to inspire the next generation of young scientists of all abilities with a passion for scientific discovery and communication and a love for the intricacy of the universe. 

Aside from my academic career, I love to bring warmth and joy to people around me through music and art. Whether that is rocking out with my band the Howlin' Poets, performing with my a cappella group Kol Halayla, capturing photos of the Milky Way from different observing sites, or creating charcoal drawings of my favorite kitties. Throughout every aspect of my life, my goals are always to find the artistic beauty within the areas that seem to lack it most and the scientific beauty within the areas that appear to be purely artistic.

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As you explore my work, I hope that you gain a greater appreciation for the scientific and artistic duality within the universe and begin to see beauty and wonder where it has previously been invisible.