Sara Webb (astrophysicist)

Sara Webb
Webb in front of nebula background
EducationSwinburne University of Technology
OccupationsAstrophysicist and Author
EmployerSwinburne University of Technology
Known forAstrophysics, Science Communication, Author
Websitehttps://www.sarawebbscience.com/

Sara A. Webb is an Australian astrophysicist, mutli-award winning science communicator and author, best known for her work at the intersection of astronomy, space-based experimentation, and public engagement. In 2025, she was recognised on the Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 List in Healthcare and Science as the only Australian academic selected . She was previously named a Superstar of STEM (Science and Technology Australia) in 2023. Webb is a Lecturer and Course Director at Swinburne University of Technology, where she leads student-driven space programs and contributes to interdisciplinary research spanning astrophysics and microgravity science.

Education and career

Webb pursued a career in astrophysics and space science, developing expertise across astronomy, data analysis, and interdisciplinary research. Her academic career has been shaped by a strong commitment to both research excellence and science education, with a particular focus on creating authentic research experiences for students.

Sara A. Webb began her academic journey with a Bachelor of Science at Queensland University of Technology, majoring in physics with minors in astrophysics and computational mathematics, where she undertook early research projects on star formation in galaxies and developed a passion for both research and science communication. During her undergraduate studies, she also wrote and led science based workshops for school students, sowing the seeds of her long-term commitment to public engagement.

For her honours year, Webb focused deeply on astrophysics through a joint research project with the Australian Astronomical Observatory, simulating supernova explosions and observing distant galaxies with Australia’s largest optical telescope. In 2017 she was selected as the sole Australian participant in international programmes including the University of Toronto’s Dunlap Summer School and the COSMOAndes workshop in Chile, experiences which solidified her research ambitions.

Webb joined Swinburne University of Technology in Australia as a PhD candidate in 2018, which she completed in 2021.[1] Her PhD helped shape the Deeper, Wider, Faster transient astronomy programme, with a thesis centred on the universe’s fastest transient events and one of the first applications of unsupervised machine learning to complex astronomical timeseries data. Her PhD work was co-supervised through international collaborations based out of Caltech and included time as a Kavli Student Fellow at UC Santa Cruz, where she further developed her computational expertise.

Following her PhD, Webb held postdoctoral roles at Swinburne, including interdisciplinary research applying machine-learning techniques to decision-support systems in partnership with national research teams. During this period, she also became Mission Director for the Swinburne Youth Space Innovation Challenge[2][3], overseeing student-designed experiments destined for the International Space Station.[4][5] Her research focuses on using artificial intelligence and machine learning to analyse large and complex astrophysical data sets, such as identifying sources of gravitational waves and fast radio bursts.[6] Her early work in machine learning for anomalous source detection allowed her to discover a sub-population of ulta fast flares on M-dwarf stars within the Milky Way.[7][8]

In mid-2024, Webb transitioned to a permanent academic appointment as Course Director at Swinburne University of Technology, where she leads Swinburne Astronomy Online, directs microgravity experimentation initiatives within the Space Technology Industry Institute, and continues her research at the intersection of astrophysics, artificial intelligence, and space science.

Webb is a prolific science communicator, appearing as an expert correspondent to discuss space and astronomy.[9][10] Webb is a go-to expert in radio,[11][12] TV[13][14] and print media.[15][16] Her articles have appeared in The Conversation, COSMOS and BBC Science Focus, and been including in the Australian Anthology Best in Science Writing.[17] Her doubt book "The Little Book of Cosmic Catastrophes" was released worldwide October 2024.[18]

Awards

  • 2018, Swinburne, Venture Cup Winner, Swinburne University of Technology[3]
  • 2022, Swinburne, Vice-Chancellor's Research Excellence Award (Early Career), Swinburne University of Technology[19]
  • 2022, Swinburne, Vice-Chancellor's Empowered Award, Swinburne University of Technology
  • 2022, National Superstar of STEM, Science and Technology Australia.[20]
  • 2023, International, Runner-Up Women in AI (Defence), Women In AI – Asia Pacific.[21]
  • 2023, Women in AI scholarship, DAIRNet.[22]
  • 2024, Rising Star of the Year – Enterprise, Australian Space Awards[23]
  • 2024, David Allen prize from the Astronomical Society of Australia.[24]
  • 2024, Swinburne Media Excellence, multiple awards.[25]
  • 2025, Forbes Asia, 30 Under 30 in Science and Healthcare.[26]
  • 2025, AmCham, Ambassadors Award[27]

References

  1. ^ ""Cosmic detective" Dr Sara Webb becomes a Superstar of STEM". www.swinburne.edu.au. 2022-11-18. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  2. ^ "High school students work with Swinburne astronomers on the future of space". www.swinburne.edu.au. 2024-07-26. Retrieved 2026-01-27.
  3. ^ a b "Researcher Profile | Swinburne University of Technology | Melbourne". www.swinburne.edu.au. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  4. ^ A Current Affair (2024-08-26). Aussie mushroom mission's chance encounter with stranded NASA astronauts | A Current Affair. Retrieved 2025-01-12 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ Webb, Sara; Allen, Rebecca (2022-11-25). "Out of this world with high school physics education (International Space Station experiments): The Swinburne Youth Space Innovation Challenge". Proceedings of the IUPAP International Conference on Physics Education 2022. Archived from the original on 2024-07-09. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  6. ^ Commissariat, Tushna (2023-08-11). "Ask me anything: Sara Webb – 'It's always beautiful and humbling to be one of the first to look at the pictures of the universe we're taking'". Physics World. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  7. ^ Webb, Sara; Lochner, Michelle; Muthukrishna, Daniel; Cooke, Jeff; Flynn, Chris; Mahabal, Ashish; Goode, Simon; Andreoni, Igor; Pritchard, Tyler; Abbott, Timothy M C (2020-10-01). "Unsupervised machine learning for transient discovery in deeper, wider, faster light curves". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 498 (3): 3077–3094. arXiv:2008.04666. doi:10.1093/mnras/staa2395. ISSN 0035-8711.
  8. ^ Webb, S; Flynn, C; Cooke, J; Zhang, J; Mahabal, A; Abbott, T M C; Allen, R; Andreoni, I; Bird, S A; Goode, S; Lochner, M; Pritchard, T (2021-09-11). "The Deeper, Wider, Faster programme: exploring stellar flare activity with deep, fast cadenced DECam imaging via machine learning". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 506 (2): 2089–2103. arXiv:2106.13026. doi:10.1093/mnras/stab1798. ISSN 0035-8711.
  9. ^ Chutel, Lynsey (2025-01-02). "A Half-Ton Piece of Space Junk Falls Onto a Village in Kenya". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  10. ^ Commissariat, Tushna (2023-08-11). "Ask me anything: Sara Webb – 'It's always beautiful and humbling to be one of the first to look at the pictures of the universe we're taking'". Physics World. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  11. ^ 2SerBreakfast (2022-10-05). "Celebrating World Space Week with Dr Sara Webb". 2SER. Retrieved 2024-05-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "What actually caused the Tunguska event?". ABC listen. 2024-06-30. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  13. ^ TODAY (2023-06-20). Astronomers discover rare planet resembling Star Wars' Tatooine | Today Show Australia. Retrieved 2025-01-12 – via YouTube.
  14. ^ Sky News Australia (2023-08-08). New report estimates 'up to 100 trillion' pieces of space junk are in Earth's atmosphere. Retrieved 2025-01-12 – via YouTube.
  15. ^ "The Solar System used to have nine planets. Maybe it still does? Here's your catch-up on space today". Inverse. 2024-02-20. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  16. ^ "Space is getting crowded with satellites and space junk. How do we avoid collisions?". www.swinburne.edu.au. 2023-10-20. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  17. ^ "The Best Australian Science Writing 2023". UNSW Press. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  18. ^ "Summer read: Cosmic Catastrophes". cosmosmagazine.com. 2024-12-26. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  19. ^ "Celebrating our values in action". www.swinburne.edu.au. 2022-12-09. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  20. ^ "Dr Sara Webb". Science and Technology Australia. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  21. ^ "2023 Women in AI awards finalists revealed". Digital Nation. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  22. ^ Clough, Aleesa (2022-08-24). "inaugural women in AI scholarships". DAIRNet. Retrieved 2024-05-25.
  23. ^ "2024 winners and finalists". SPACECONNECT. Retrieved 2024-06-04.
  24. ^ "Achievements and awards". www.swinburne.edu.au. Retrieved 2024-06-28.
  25. ^ "Celebrating Swinburne's 2024 Media and External Communications Recognition Award winners". www.swinburne.edu.au. 2024-12-06. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
  26. ^ "Sara Webb". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-05-17.
  27. ^ "Winners of the 2025 Alliance Awards".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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