I am an Astrophysics graduate student at Harvard University and I study core-collapse supernovae – the violent explosions of massive stars when they reach the end of their life.

I work on a variety of related research questions, all of which focus on using advanced machine learning methods and AI to model complex physical problems. My primary interest is building neural network emulators of complicated simulations. By using a neural network as a “surrogate” model for a simulation, the process of physical inference can be dramatically sped up.

On an astrophysical note, the supernovae I study are so violent and bright that they can be seen across hundreds of megaparsecs from distant galaxies! Because this explosion happens when a star dies, it can be used to probe the details of how stars die and the unique processes that happen during stellar death.

My name is Karthik Yadavalli. I was born in India, and grew up right outside Atlanta, Georgia. I graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology with a major in physics (concentrating in astrophysics) and a minor in computational data analysis in May 2021. I graduated from the Pennsylvania State University in July 2023, and am currently in the third year of my PhD at Harvard University (as in, fifth year of grad school).

In my free time, I like to rock climb, hike, and ride my bicycle.