“As a kid, my parents read me a book called ‘My Place in Space’ which quickly became my favourite.”

• Dr. Danny Price, Senior Research Fellow

From Atoms to Galaxies

Dr Danny Price, who studies the cosmos through building and upgrading radio telescopes, was captivated by the heavens at a young age. Growing up in Western Australia, Danny had an amazing view of the stars, and his passion for astronomy was evident even in primary school. In high school, faced with the tough choice between being a guitarist or pursuing astronomy, Danny decided on the latter. 

After completing a science degree at University of Western Australia, Danny was drawn to further study by the Square Kilometre Array – an international radio telescope project that will be built in Western Australia – and enrolled in a PhD at the University of Oxford to contribute to the project. After some time abroad at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Danny returned to Australia, where he is a Senior Research Fellow at the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy.

One challenge Danny faces is keeping up-to-date among the many endeavours he’s involved with, and not signing up to too many more. Although having chosen stars over stardom for a career many years ago, Danny still plays guitar in his spare time, though recently his one-year-old son has been keeping him busy as well.

Danny is passionate about understanding the universe and hopes to continue uncovering all of its amazing secrets.

“I want to know if we are alone in the Universe, or if there is life out there somewhere. When we look up at the stars, is there anyone looking back? I want to keep trying to answer this question, even if it takes a lifetime.”