Winter term 2026
EXPLORE VII
Explore VII (EXPeriential Learning Opportunity through Research and Exchange) is an academic course for international student research collaboration. It is an innovative teaching initiative offered by the Goethe University (Germany), York University, and University of Alberta (Canada). Canadian students from York University must apply for participation - please check below! See also below for details on the registration for Goethe-University students!
Research topics:
Dark Matter Spikes Around Black Hole Mimickers (Nassim Bozorgnia & Saeed Rastgoo)
Using Cepheids as distance and mass tracers (Camilla Hansen & Andrew Gallagher)
Quasar variability as a tool to understand quasars better (Patrick Hall)
Recipes for forming dark compact stars (Laura Sagunski & Jürgen Schaffner-Bielich)
Format: The lecture will be given in English and will take place Online via Zoom.
Schedule: [First EXPLORE VII meeting on 20 October 2026, 17:00 pm CEST = 11 am ET = 9 am MT., Online on Zoom]
Lecturer(s): Prof. Laura Sagunski | Prof. Jürgen Schaffner-Bielich | Prof. Camilla Hansen | Priv.-Doz. Tanja Heftrich | Prof. Andrew Gallagher | Prof. Saeed Rastgoo | Prof. Nassim Bozorgnia | Prof. Sean Tulin | Prof. Patrick Hall |
Head Tutor(s): Maximilian Klotzbach, Kian Fouladi (Tutors from Goethe University)
Exceptions: -
Course organisation
Format of the lecture
-
Since EXPLORE is an international collaborative project, all lectures and tutorials will be taking place online via Zoom.
Note that the first two EXPLORE meetings in Mid October will be recorded and uploaded to a Google Drive folder.
Communication between lecturer(s), tutors and students
- We use a common Discord channel for communication. The invitation link will also be distributed among the participants in the first sessions.
Participation & Tasks (Studienleistung)
- With your peers from Germany and Canada, you will work in small groups exploring and working on real research topics (see below). These will be accompanied by lectures providing the basic knowledge of the topics and Python tutorials to learn scientific computing. Additionally, there will be weekly team meetings with your group mentor to exchange your ideas and receive feedback.
Examination (Prüfungsleistung)
- You will have successfully passed the EXPLORE course after your presentation of your research project results in a scientific workshop at the end of the semester. The amount of Credit Points a participant will receive from their university will be also announced soon.
Recommended literature & Course material
-
EXPLORE for students: Folder with course material
-
GitHub Repository for Python Programming Learning
-
Recorded Lecture 1 from a previous EXPLORE edition: Introduction (Mentors) and Cosmology (Laura Sagunski)
-
Recorded Lecture 2 from a previous EXPLORE edition: Dark Matter (Sean Tulin & Nassim Bozorgnia)
-
Recorded Lecture 3 from a previous EXPLORE edition: Gravitational Waves (Saeed Rastgoo) & Quasars (Patrick Hall)
-
Recorded Lecture 4 from a previous EXPLORE edition: Machine Learning (Jim Mertens) & Neutron Stars and compact objects (Jürgen Schaffner-Bielich)
-
Recorded Lecture 5 from a previous EXPLORE edition: Near-field cosmology with stars (Camilla Hansen)
Schedule
| ID | Day | Time | Room | Language | Person |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First EXPLORE VII Meeting | 20 October 2026 | 17:00 pm CEST = 11 am ET = 9 am MT | Online on Zoom (see OLAT) | English | Students & Mentors |
| Second EXPLORE VII Meeting | 23 October 2026 | 17:00 pm CEST = 11 am ET = 9 am MT | Online on Zoom (see OLAT) | English | Students & Mentors |
| Final EXPLORE VII Workshop | tba | tba | Online on Zoom (link tba) | English | Students & Mentors |