"I am deeply humbled and honoured to be chosen for this Queen's Leaders recognition. I will use this as an opportunity to strengthen bonds between NI and India and motivate more people to study in the UK." 

From a small village in rural Kerala, India, to the historic Paris Observatory, Dr Aswin Sekhar has charted a remarkable journey among the stars. As India’s first professional meteor scientist, he studies the orbits of small celestial bodies, advancing our understanding of space. His groundbreaking work has earned global recognition, including the naming of a minor planet, 33928 Aswinsekhar, in honour of his contributions to meteor science. Beyond his research, Aswin is passionate about public engagement and education, regularly organising sky-gazing sessions and outreach programmes for young people in rural and tribal parts of India, as well as coordinating telescope donation programs to rural and tribal schools and colleges across India. 

"My job is to study orbits of asteroids, comets and meteor showers and try to make our Earth and Earthlings safer from outer space risks and threats." 

Aswin has fond memories of his time at Queen’s and Northern Ireland where interactions with scientists and students in Northern Ireland revealed the importance of science outreach. He has been appointed as an Honorary Professor by the Indian Centre for Space Research, and Christ University Bangalore. 

"The seeds of spreading the magic of space science through telescopes and sky gazing came to me from the community"