Hi y’all, I am Sam Ecclestone-Brown, a forth year MPhys Astrophysics with year abroad student studying at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), Cambridge, MA. This is the flagship program offered to five MPhys Physics with Astronomy students to complete a year of research abroad as the final year of their degree. That does mean I did not get to choose where my year abroad was but I am very happy with where I am.
Since coming to the US in 2019 as part of the World Scout Jamboree in West Virginia, I have wanted to come back and explore the country more. This program has allowed me to do just that: I have been able to explore Boston and the wider Boston metropolitan areas of Cambridge and Sommerville as well as have a trip to Phoenix, Arizona. Whilst experiencing another culture has been awesome, a lot of my focus has been on my research and cultivating relationships and skills surrounding that.
The CfA is a research institute that brings together brilliant minds from both Harvard and the Smithsonian which allows unique research to occur. I have learnt so much about the research process which has allowed me to make an informed decision about applying for PhD positions for next year, which I don’t believe I could have done without this program and the opportunities that it has provided (I’ll touch on one in particular later).
If I had to sum up my experiences of exploring the local area in one word it would have to be ‘weird’. In a good way, let me make that clear. I have found Cambridge especially to look from the outside extremely European (stemming from its mostly historic buildings, especially around the Harvard campus, built out of red brick) but to rapidly be reminded by the unapologetic American reality by stepping into a building or just around the corner. I have enjoyed exploring the many quads of the Harvard campus and meeting many of the students here as I have been lucky to successfully join one of their Orchestras and then to play in the pit band for a production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance. Here, lasting friendships will remain not only with myself but also between the University of Southampton’s Light Opera Society and the Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert and Sullivan players as we look to continue to put on productions of whimsical, light-hearted theatre for many years to come.
I briefly made an appearance for the Harvard Rugby team before injuring myself in the first game of the season so no more needs saying about that.
My trip to Phoenix was to attend the the 247th meeting of the American Astronomical Society, basically fancy way of saying lets have a get together with the pretense of collaborative work… Suffice to say food was consumed, drink was drunk and some science was discussed. I did present a poster and enjoyed sharing the progress of research into the Search for Einstein Spirals (a type of astronomical object that will allow us to measure Super and Ultra Massive Black Hole masses).
I have also been able to experience a few of the American holidays: Halloween and Thanksgiving (or Friendsgiving when you celebrate with a group of friends). I knew coming into the trip that Halloween would be something but I was not prepared for the shear scale of it, my street was closed of to cars and over the course of the evening we went through 6 very large (even by American standards) bags of candy. Just to say that it is something to behold how seriously it is taken here. On the other side the Friendsgiving, hosted by one of the SPARK students (another program run by the CfA), was incredibly wholesome and was a nice way to end the first term enjoying a great meal with a lot of the new friends that I and the other Southampton students had made.
I think to conclude, I would just like to say that to any of the upcoming cohort and anyone who is thinking about this as a possibility over the next few years. Go for it, work hard but remember to enjoy your time as well.