Viola Gelli

Viola Gelli is a Research Fellow at the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, specializing in the Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN) where she investigates galaxy formation during the universe's first billion years. Her work combines James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) observations with theoretical modeling to study high-redshift phenomena including Population III galaxies and early star formation processes.

Her research focuses on astrophysical processes at cosmic dawn, particularly bursty star formation, metallicity evolution in primordial galaxies, and feedback mechanisms from supernovae. She employs multi-wavelength JWST data to analyze galaxy clustering, stellar populations, and chemical enrichment in the reionization era, often developing novel statistical approaches for interpreting sparse high-z observations.

Analysis of her eight recent publications reveals a cohesive research program centered on JWST's capabilities to probe the epoch of first galaxies. Her work consistently addresses how stellar feedback shapes early galaxy evolution, with particular emphasis on quenching mechanisms, metal-pollution signatures, and connections between high-z systems and local galaxy analogs.

No scientific awards were documented in the available institutional materials.

Gelli actively contributes to major international collaborations including the Lighter BEACON JWST survey consortium, where her expertise in pure-parallel imaging analysis informs survey design and data interpretation. Her research methodology integrates observational constraints with cosmological simulations to model galaxy formation under extreme high-redshift conditions.

As a core member of the Cosmic Dawn Center, she participates in this Danish National Research Foundation-funded initiative that unites theoretical and observational efforts across multiple institutions to decode the physics of cosmic dawn through coordinated JWST programs and simulation campaigns.