Wen-fai Fong named ‘Rising Star’ by Astronomy Magazine
March 7, 2023
*Some text taken from Northwestern News. Click here to read the article 
Congratulations to Wen-fai Fong for being named ‘Rising Star’ by Astronomy Magazine! This honor recognizes 25 early career astronomers who have already made significant impacts in the field.
Fong was cited for her work to better understand the universe’s fastest explosions, known as transients, which include short gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs) and fast radio bursts (FRBs). These enigmatic events flare up quickly and then disappear within seconds or even fractions of a second. Fong’s research group seeks to understand what powers these events, what types of host galaxy environments give rise to them and uncover the nature and composition of material ejected from the explosions.
When Fong entered the field, the origins of SGRBs were uncertain. Now, thanks in part to her research, astronomers suspect SGRBs might be generated by colliding neutron stars or black holes.
“I am honored to be among this international group of talented scientists,” Fong said. “This honor gives me a chance to reflect upon my career thus far. It has been thrilling to interact with the universe as it changes on timescales relevant to humans (hours to days) and make new discoveries. It is particularly heart-warming for me to pass excitement on to the next generation of students and for them to see the universe in fresh ways and make their own discoveries.”
Click here to read the article from Astronomy Magazine