Elias Oakes - Astronomy

About me

I'm a PhD candidate at the University of Connecticut, researching the structure of the interstellar medium (clouds of gas and dust in space) and its relation to star formation. As part of the PHANGS collaboration, my work focuses on nearby, massive, star-forming galaxies like the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253), which we reveal at high resolution using telescopes like ALMA, JWST, and HST.

My expertise includes the structure and properties of cloud-like objects in molecular gas, as well as data reduction for the PHANGS-ALMA and PHANGS-JWST pipelines. I'm also highly involved in several community outreach and advocacy projects including the UConn STARs program, Skype a Scientist, the PHANGS YouTube and PHANGS colloquium series, and UConn's Graduate Employee and Postdoc Union.

You can read more about my research, publications, and outreach on this page.

Welcome!

Scientific interests

Interstellar medium in nearby galaxies

Structure and hierarchy of the interstellar medium

Structural decomposition of molecular gas maps

Star formation and evolution

Dust and PAH emission

Accessibility and science education

Technical expertise

Python, C, ROOT, Java, HTML

CASA, IRAF, SAOImage DS9, DAOPHOT/ALLSTAR

ALMA, JWST, IRAM 30m, SMA

Research

A selection of my current and former research projects. For a closer look, click the on one of the figures below, or click the for more details.

Publications

"The Fraction of Dust Mass in the Form of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons on 10-50 pc Scales in Nearby Galaxies." Sutter, J. et al. (incl. Oakes, Elias K.) 2024, ApJ, 971, 178.

"PHANGS-JWST: Data Processing Pipeline and First Full Public Data Release." Williams, T. G. et al. (incl. Oakes, Elias K.) 2024, ApJS, 273, 13.

"The impact of HII regions on Giant Molecular Cloud properties in nearby galaxies sampled by PHANGS ALMA and MUSE." Zakardjian, A., Pety, J., Herrera, C. N., Hughes, A., Oakes, Elias K., and the PHANGS collaboration 2023, A&A, 678, A171.

"Distances to Local Group Galaxies via Population II, Stellar Distance Indicators II: The Fornax Dwarf Spheroidal." Oakes, Elias K., Hoyt, T. J., Freedman, W. L., Madore, B. F., Tran, Q. H., Cerny, W., Beaton, R. L., and Seibert, M. 2022, ApJ, 786, 64.

"Distances to Local Group Galaxies via Population II, Stellar Distance Indicators I: The Sculptor Dwarf Spheroidal." Tran, Q. H., Hoyt, T. J., Freedman, W. L., Madore, B. F., Oakes, Elias K., Cerny, W., Hatt, D., and Beaton, R. L. 2022, ApJ, 935, 34.

"Multi-Wavelength, Optical (VI) and Near-Infrared (JHK) Calibration of the Tip of the Red Giant Branch Method based on Milky Way Globular Clusters." Cerny, W., Freedman, W. L., Madore, B. F., Ashmead, F., Hoyt, T., Oakes, Elias K., Tran, Q. H., and Moss, B. 2020, arxiv:astro-ph/0507244.

Outreach & Teaching

Rather than imposing knowledge or charity from the top down, I believe in empowering students and minoritized groups to learn, do science, and advocate for themselves. I'm proud to carry out this philosophy in my teaching, undergraduate mentorship, and work with the STARs program. I'm also a strong believer in science communication, which I support through volunteering with Skype a Scientist and coordinating several outreach efforts for the PHANGS team.

Teaching

When teaching, I strive to remain approachable, engaged, and promote hands-on learning. I've led classes as a course assistant and teaching assistant for several lab-based introductory astronomy and physics courses at UConn. These include multiple sections of Introductory Astronomy with Laboratory (PHYS 1025Q), General Physics with Calculus I (1401Q), and Physics for Engineers II (1502Q). If you're a student looking to reach me, find my office hours and contact info below.

Mentoring

During the 2023-24 academic year, I helped guide Lia Gilmore, an undergraduate student in the Faesi group, through a project studying the resolved impact of AGN feedback on molecular gas properties. In the previous year, I mentored Neal Krishna through his honors thesis project, "A pixel-to-pixel analysis of the Kennicutt-Schmidt relationship in NGC 4254." Neal presented this research at the American Astronomical Society's 241^st meeting in Seattle, Washington, and is now a Fullbright scholar in Taiwan.

STARs

The UConn Science Technology and Astronomy Recruits (STARs) program, started by Prof. Battersby and students in 2022, aims to recruit and retain undergraduate students from historically excluded groups in Physics. I am a managing co-lead of the program, working with the cohort to organize professional development workshops, social and community-building events, and physics lessons at local schools.

Skype a Scientist

Through Skype a Scientist, I'm connected with classrooms, families, and student groups around the world to talk about astrophysics. I've given in-person and virtual presentations (including about the lunar phases and eclipses), guided student projects (including about Mars colonization), answered questions, and discussed my research with many different groups. If you're interested in a call or visit, get in touch!

PHANGS YouTube & Colloquia

Sharing the awesome research happening in the PHANGS collaboration is an essential part of our duty as scientists. With a few other PHANGS members, I founded our YouTube channel in 2023 for public-facing videos about recent discoveries and publications. Additionally, I coordinate a monthly PHANGS colloquium series to keep the collaboration informed about cross-discipline research and build early-career members' presentation skills.

Union Organizing

A positive working environment is one where quality research thrives! I served as the Union Guide from 2023-24, an elected member on the executive board of UConn's Graduate Employee and Postdoc Union (GEU-UAW Local 6950). As a current member of the Organizing Committee and Grievance Committee, I work to ensure that our members are treated fairly and equitably by the University. If you have any questions about the Union, want to get involved, or have concerns about your working conditions, please get in touch!