Gabriela A. Marques

About Me

Image credit: Sandbox Studio, Chicago

Hi there!

I have some exciting news to share--I have just moved to the Brazilian Center for Research in Physics (Portuguese: Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Físicas, CBPF) as an Associate Researcher. Prior to this, I was a postdoctoral researcher at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) and an Associate Fellow at the Kavli Institute of Cosmological Physics (KICP) at the University of Chicago.

My research focuses on using data from the Cosmic Microwave Background and the Large-Scale Structure to constrain fundamental physics and deepen our understanding of the evolution of the Universe. I’m especially passionate about developing and implementing innovative techniques to maximize the information we can extract from these observations.

I hold a Ph.D. and a Master’s degree in Astronomy from the Observatório Nacional in Brazil. I was raised in the beautiful state of Bahia, Brazil, before relocating to Brasilia, where I obtained my undergraduate degree in Physics from the University of Brasilia. Prior to joining the Cosmic Physics Center at Fermilab, I held a postdoctoral position in the Department of Physics at Florida State University, working with Dr Kevin Huffenberger's group.

Apart from Cosmology, I’m deeply inspired by the beauty of nature, the world, and humanity, and I harbor a passion (though not necessarily expertise!) for various things, including rock climbing and playing Brazilian percussion. I also like incorporating the colors of my home biome, the Cerrado, into my Python plots. You can check out more here !

Research

Digital painting of a simulated map of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) on the left and the Large-Scale Structure (LSS) on the right.

My current research explores the intersection of theory, observational data, and cosmological simulations. My particular niche in this broad theme is to analyze observations of the ancient light from the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) and the large-scale structure (LSS) of the Universe to address key questions in fundamental physics. Specifically, I’m interested in conducting cross-correlations between multiple probes detected by different surveys, with the ultimate goal of constraining the growth of cosmic structures over time and to identify potential systematic effects. Additionally, I’m delving into the analyses of non-Gaussian signals of LSS data, which hold valuable information of the non-linear regime, as a complementary method for understanding the Universe.
You can find more information about my studies of these topics in the list of scientific publications below.

PUBLICATIONS:

My current work is connected to multiple cosmological surveys. I am an active member of the following collaborations:

• Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT)
• Simons Observatory (SO)
• CMB-S4
• Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time Dark Energy Science Collaboration (LSST-DESC)
• Dark Energy Survey (DES)-- *external collaborator

Community

• Grace Gibbins, University of Arizona, Summer 2024 → Cross-correlating Cosmological Probes for LSST & CMB-S4 (Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship)
• Yaman Acharya, Gettysburg College, Summer 2024 → Impact of Varying Dark Energy on Future Large-Scale Structure Studies (Summer Internships in Science and Technology)
• Alyssa Johnson, Humboldt State University, 2020-2022 e → Dust contribution of the ACT clusters (Simons-National Society of Black Physicists Scholars Program, co-mentor with Kevin Huffenberger)

• Daniela Grandón (2021-2022, University of Chile) → Impact of baryonic feedback on HSC Y1 weak lensing non-Gaussian statistics
• Leander Thiele (2021-2022, Princeton University) → Cosmological constraints from the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam year 1 shear catalogue lensing convergence probability distribution function

• ACT and SPT Analysis School, University of Chicago, 2024
• PHY 2054C. College Physics B- Florida State University, Spring 2022
• Minicursos de Cosmologia, Universidade do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte-UERN, Brazil, 2021
• Introductory Astronomy Laboratory (AST1002L)- Florida State University, Spring 2021 and Spring 2020

• Talk at EEEM Dom Daniel Comboni, Nova Venécia, Espirito Santo, Brazil, 2023
• Conéctate con Fermilab, for college and undergraduate students, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, USA, 2022
• CMB-S4 Saturday Space Science Series, Talk: Dark Matter, Fall 2021
• CMB-S4 Saturday Space Science Series, Talk: The Lambda-CDM Model, Spring 2021
• Scientific carrer and gender, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Aracaju, 2020
• Girls and Women in Science, Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2018
• The female presence in science - Tribute to Niède Guidon, Museu do Amanhã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2018
• Mentor at Indigenous and Quilombola Monitoring Program, University of Brasília, Brazil, 2011-2013
• Contributor to the magazine "Physicae Organum'' for popularization of Physics and Science of University of Brasilia, Brazil
• Colaborator of the Brazilian Space Agency School project (AEB Escola), Brazil, 2010-2013

• Yaman Acharya's project
• Dark Matter Mapped Around Distant Galaxies , Viewpoint, American Physical Society
• Radiação Cósmica de Fundo em Micro-ondas , Physicae Organum

Contact

Email:

Miscellaneous

Image credit: Claudio Elisabetsky (Photographer), Eduardo Costa (photography assistant). Cover of Parabolicamará album by Gilberto Gil.

Helpful/Nice/Random links:

• Avoiding racial bias in letter of reference writing
• Astronomers for Planet Earth
• Data on indigenous nations and their territories
• A tool to show telescopes on Indigenous lands and help us properly acknowledge them.
• Colors of Cerrado for Python plots
• Eiichiro Komatsu's presentation on tips for faculty, grant, and fellowship applications
• A playlist of Brazilian songs inspired by the cosmos (and beyond)