By Imaan Moosa
Edited by Yumna Bodiat
We spoke with Sinenhlanhla Sikhosana to learn more about HERstory.
Sinenhlanhla Sikhosana at the 69th Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting in Lindau, Germany. Photo: Provided
Growing up in rural Kwazulu-Natal in the town of Harding, a child is free to explore the terrain without the watchful eyes of parental supervision. Love for adventure and the thrill of discoveries are made possible, and the children of Harding are raised with the universe beating in rhythm to the tempo of their hearts.
For a twenty-seven-year-old astrophysicist Sinenhlanhla Sikhosana, her heartstrings extend beyond the tips of her fingers, reaching for the stars.
The discoveries we made while searching for cattle in the veld ignited my inquisitive mind at a very young age. From then on I knew I wanted to be part of the teams who made ground-breaking discoveries.
Although Sikhosana’s desire to study the way the world works was decided upon at an early age, she was only able to put into words what she wanted to be in her matric year.
"I was exposed [in my matric year] to the possibility of a career in astronomy in South Africa. The University of Kwazulu-Natal (UKZN) postgraduate students passionately shared how they were trying to solve the mysteries of the universe. I was instantly sold," she says.
Sikhosana is a postdoctoral fellow at UKZN where her area of focus is diffuse radio emission in ACTPol clusters. She says she chose the topic because it fascinates her to see how small-scale particle physics plays a larger role in the evolution of the universe.
She uses radio telescopes, such as the South African MeerKAT telescope to study galaxy clusters. Galaxy clusters are “the most massive objects in the universe (1 000 000 000 000 00 times heavier than the mass of our sun!)”.
We study particle interactions of these massive objects and we aim to show how these interactions play a role in the evolution of the large-scale universe.
In 2019, Sikhosana attended the 69th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting dedicated to physics in Lindau, Germany. The Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting happens once every year where around 30-40 Nobel Laureates convene in Lindau to meet the next generation of leading scientists. The meetings include 600 undergraduates, Ph.D. students, and post-doc researchers from different generations, cultures, and disciplines from all over the world.
Sikhosana met the criterion as one of the top-performing young scientists in the country.
When asked about her experience, she says:
"Imagine all the superstars you look up to. It can be movie superheroes, musical geniuses, creative authors or the most renowned painters. I’m sure your mind is already buzzing with names. Now imagine that you were invited to an event, something like the iconic Comic-Con.
"Not only do you get to be part of this event, but you are able to have dinner and individual engagements with all your superheroes in just five days! Now while all this feels like you are in a dream, imagine finding out that all these people you have perceived to have supernatural powers are human, just like you. That they too had failed numerous times and even had moments when they just wanted to give up. Your perception of life and its possibilities would change forever!"
Sinenhlanhla Sikhosana at the L'Oréal-Unesco For Women in Science Awards. The FWSA aims "to empower more women scientists to achieve scientific excellence and participate equally in solving the great challenges facing humanity. To date, we have awarded more than 100 laureates, three of whom have gone on to win Nobel Prizes". Photo: Provided
While astrophysics has heralded Sikhosana into a new world of opportunities that are appropriately well-deserved, the field remains a space that negates her access and expression of herself as a woman.
It is a largely male-dominated field and even the females have traits of masculinity. I’ve consciously chosen to be true to my feminine self. I continuously choose to show compassion to my younger colleagues, to be bubbly and goofy, and to dress up for occasions.
Some of her colleagues have suggested she try out for the creative arts but, “I am happily defying the stereotypes of what a ‘scientist’ should look or act like” she says.
Sikhosana remains optimistic and determined for the future. Her short-term goal is to obtain the ‘Dr’ title. She also endeavors to create a mentorship program to guide young girls who hope to become scientists.
“I have also personally encountered that no matter how brilliant your science is unless communicated effectively it will never make the necessary impact to a wider community,” she says.
This realisation resulted in her idea of technical science writing retreats for postgraduate students, a dream she intends to complete in the future. After her short-term goals are fulfilled, she will be aiming for a permanent position in academia.
Addendum:
ACTPol: The Atacama Cosmology Telescope, a six-metre telescope located at 5190 meters Cerro Toco in Northern Chile and is dedicated to observing the structure and evolution of the universe.
More about Sinenhlanhla:
Her interests include the study of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). AGNs are dense regions at the center of galaxies that eject particles seen both in radio wavelength and X-ray wavelength. They are thought to be powered by supermassive black holes. It’s one of my favourite areas of study because it involves many aspects of astrophysics, such as magnetic fields, particle acceleration and black holes.
I love reading, especially African fiction. I’m also into sports. When I still had the time I played tennis, now I watch it on TV. I also love storytelling and writing, hence I am a member of the South African Young Academy of Science’ (SAYAS) blog team.
Her inspiration is: Charlotte Maxeke, Donna Strickland and Mamokgethi Phakeng. I’m inspired by people who have a story beyond science. These women have broken many boundaries and stereotypes. Most importantly, they are also humanitarians.
She does not believe in star signs because Zodiac signs were originally used as a calendar to keep track of the time of the year. I do not believe that a constellation of stars has any effect on my personality or love life.
Her star sign is Aries.
About the universe: The multiverse theory originates from both the String and the Quantum theories. These are both very complex theories. I’m not a theorist, hence will not critique them. However, as an observational astronomer, I become fully sold on a theory once we can directly or indirectly observe the phenomenon proposed by it. Based on Einstein’s Theory of Special Relativity, I do believe that time is relative. Scientists through experiments have proved that time is dependent on a frame of reference.
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