Marcel S. Pawlowski

Dr. Marcel S. Pawlowski is a Leibniz Junior Research Group Leader at the Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam (AIP) since July 2021, leading the "Cosmic Choreographies" project within the Dwarf Galaxies and the Galactic Halo research group. He holds a PhD from the University of Bonn (2013) and has held prestigious fellowships including the Hubble Fellowship at UC Irvine (2016-2018) and the Schwarzschild Fellowship at AIP.

His research focuses on dwarf and satellite galaxies, galaxy dynamics and evolution, and near-field cosmology. He investigates the distribution and behavior of satellite galaxies around larger galaxies like the Milky Way and Andromeda, challenging standard cosmological models through his work on plane structures of satellite systems. His research has particular relevance for testing the Lambda Cold Dark Matter (ΛCDM) model against observational data.

Dr. Pawlowski's publication record shows a consistent focus on satellite galaxy systems, with recent work examining measurement uncertainties in satellite plane stability, asymmetric satellite distributions around Andromeda, and correlations in phase-space of satellite systems. His research increasingly combines observational data with cosmological simulations to address fundamental questions about galaxy formation and dark matter distribution.

• Klaus-Tschira Boost Fund recipient
• Fellow of the German Scholars Organization e.V. Leadership Academy (2016-2017)
• Fellow of the Leibniz Leadership Academy (2021-2022)
• Hubble Fellow at the University of California, Irvine
• Schwarzschild-Fellow at AIP

At the University of Potsdam, Dr. Pawlowski teaches advanced courses in Computational Astrophysics and Dark Matter, with a pedagogical approach that emphasizes both theoretical foundations and current research debates. His teaching includes interactive components where students lead discussions on seminal papers in the field and current research topics. His research group actively collaborates with international partners and utilizes data from major observatories including the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) and MUSE instrument.