Nino Panagia

I’m a senior astronomer for the European Space Agency at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. My home country is Italy. I got into astronomy when I was at university, I think it was because I was good at physics and there is lots of physics in astronomy. As a child I liked chemistry – I made my own chlorine gas, burned a few tables and was always reading my older brother’s science books. I was interested in science in general, even before I started learning science at school.

I am involved in many projects and proposals for using the Hubble Space Telescope. Part of my job is to oversee the work of other astronomers working here for ESA. In my spare time I like listening to baroque music, especially Vivaldi, I like to hike and enjoy snorkelling and swimming. I have a daughter aged 36 and a son aged 34 who live in Italy.