Nomthendeleko Motha

Nomthendeleko is a PhD student at the University of the Western Cape, where she explores synergies between next-generation surveys with the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). She earned her master’s degree in Physics at the University of Johannesburg (Centre for Astro-Particle Physics) as a recipient of the prestigious Global Excellence and Stature (GES) Scholarship. Her research interests also cover Bayesian Statistics and Machine Learning.

Throughout her academic journey, Nomthendeleko has been actively involved in several astronomy outreach programmes, most recently at the 2024 International Astronomical Union (IAU) General Assembly. She has delivered lectures and served on the organising committee for the National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme (NASSP) Winter School at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO). At present, she also serves as a mentoring coordinator for the Supernova Foundation, a global mentoring programme aimed at supporting women and/or gender-minority university students in physics.

When not working or engaging in outreach, she can be found exploring the great outdoors and immersing herself in nature, with a camera, or refining her tennis skills on the court. 

"Beyond making impactful contributions in Astronomy through cutting-edge research, I am deeply committed to creating sustainable ways to make science more inclusive and accessible to marginalized communities in Southern Africa and beyond." 

Nomthendeleko Motha is a part of the Falling Walls Female Science Talents Intensive Track 2025.