The Rice Research Group  

Yan Liang is a 51 Pegasi b Fellow at Yale University. She develops generative AI models to disentangle stellar activity from planetary signals in radial-velocity data, with the goal of uncovering small, Earth-like planets. More broadly, she is interested in applying machine learning methods across astronomy. She received her Ph.D. in astrophysics from Princeton University and her B.A. in physics from UC Berkeley.

Nick Saunders is a YCAA Prize Postdoctoral Fellow at Yale University. He obtained a BS in Astronomy and Physics and a BA in Cinema Studies from the University of Washington in Seattle. Nick spent a year as a Support Scientist for the Kepler/K2 mission at the NASA Ames Research Center before obtaining his PhD at the Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. His research lies at the intersection of theoretical stellar astrophysics and observational exoplanet science, exploring how planetary systems change as their stars evolve.

Quang Tran is a 51 Pegasi b Fellow at Yale University. He obtained his BA in Physics from the University of Chicago in 2018 and his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin in 2024. His research is primarily focused on giant planet migration and evolution, precision radial velocities, and young stars and stellar varability. He is also dedicated to leveraging mentorship as a means to increase accessibility to science and astronomy.

Isabella Trierweiler is a postdoctoral associate at Yale University. Her research focuses on the use of polluted white dwarfs to study the compositions and geochemistry of exoplanets. She completed her undergraduate studies at Yale and earned her PhD from UCLA. She’s also excited about informal education and science communication, and served as an outreach coordinator for UCLA Astronomy and as an author for Astrobites.

Tiger Lu is a Flatiron Research Fellow at the Center for Computational Astrophysics (CCA) in New York City. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University in 2025 and his B.S. from Caltech in 2020. He is broadly interested in exoplanet dynamics, numerical methods, planet-disk interactions and planetary interiors.

William Chang is a second-year Physics PhD student at Yale University. He graduated from UCLA with a major in Physics and a minor in Mathematics. His research focuses on wide-orbit exoplanets and “Planet Nine” analogues, combining direct imaging, microlensing, and astrometry to study the architectures and formation pathways of distant planetary systems. He is currently developing a neural network–based shift-and-stack pipeline for TESS to uncover faint, distant Solar System objects. Beyond research, William is passionate in STEM education and science policy. He currently serves on the Graduate and Professional Student Senate (GPSS) executive board, is a Cultivating Conversation Fellow, a McDougal Teaching Fellow, and President of the Yale Taiwanese Student Association.

Rewa Clark Bush is a first-year Astronomy PhD student at Yale. She received her BA in English from Oberlin College and MA in Astronomy from Wesleyan University. She is interested in the evolution of exoplanet orbits and their implications for habitability. Rewa is passionate about space environmentalism and has worked in dark sky preservation and education in both state and national parks.

Ben Cassese is a fifth-year, finishing PhD student at Columbia University interested in the edges of our solar system and the planets/moons beyond them. Prior to joining Columbia, he graduated from Caltech with a degree in Planetary Science and History. In addition to research, he is also passionate about science communication and currently serves as the AAS Media Fellow as well as an author within the Astrobites Collaboration.

Kendra Nguyen is a second-year Astronomy PhD student at Yale. They are from Los Angeles, CA, where they also studied Astronomy and Politics at Pomona College. They are interested in exoplanet characterization and studying exoplanets in binary systems. Beyond research, they are passionate about public outreach and speaking with students.

Yurou (Nina) Liu is a fourth-year undergraduate student at Yale University majoring in physics and computer science, and interested in planetary astrophysics. She is researching the formation and evolution of hot Jupiters in binary systems. In her free time, Nina enjoys making handicrafts and drawing. She also enjoys learning about art and architecture history.

Kenny Phan is a third-year undergraduate student at Yale University majoring in Astrophysics, with broad fascinations in planetary physics, astrobiology, and cosmology. He is interested in STEM education, particularly as it relates to access and equity. He has resolved weather patterns on Neptune from photometric data, and plans to perform a similar analysis for other gas giants. During his spare time he likes to cook and read history.