Kanty Astronomy Research Group

KARG's research internship is a flagship programme for undergraduate and postgraduate students in physics, mathematics and computer science who wish to acquire hands-on experience in astronomy research, addressing a gap in opportunities that are essential for developing a career in the field. The first cohort of internship was conducted in 2024 as part of the Star Clusters in southern Collisional Ring Galaxy (SC2RG) survey project and focused exclusively on collisional ring galaxies. Five out of the six selected students based in Madagascar and South Africa successfully completed their internship in August 2024. Last year, KARG hosted two interns from the University of Antananarivo Madagascar. Their research investigated the underlying physics of giant radio galaxies and the properties of bright kpc-scale clumps, respectively.

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This third round of research internship is designed exclusively for students in Madagascar and South Africa. At least two internships will be awarded to applicants holding a three-year undergraduate study in Physics, Mathematics or Computer Science.  Selected candidates will spend a minimum of three months working part-time studying extended radio galaxies or star-forming regions in interacting galaxies. Subject to approval from the University's head Astrophysics & Space Science Programme, the internship project could potentially be upgraded into Master's (M2) thesis projects for students registered at the University of Antananarivo. Another highlight of the internship is the possibility to present key results from the research project during astronomy conferences such as the Malagasy national Astronomy Meeting (MAM) and the African Astronomical Society (AfAS) Conference. Interns are also encouraged to attend KARG research group meetings to gain feedback from their peers and the group leader. Subject to satisfactory performance, interns may receive a reasonable stipend at the end of the programme to cover incidental expenses such as internet costs and local transports.

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 Your profile  

Interested candidates should meet the following requirements to be considered for the internship:

• Based in Madagascar or South Africa;

• Hold a three-year bachelor's (licence) degree in Physics, Mathematics or Computer Science;

• With basic programming skills and good English communication. All written communication (e.g. email exchanges) as well as the literature review will be conducted in English;

• Not engaged in any ongoing research thesis during the internship period;

• Committed to work on the assigned project remotely on a part-time basis and to attend KARG meetings;

• Keen to participate in KARG’s outreach initiatives. The research group is actively engaged in outreach activities such as Le Rendez-Vous des Astrophiles and SheMatters. The latter is a STEM-based community engagement that leverages astronomy to inspire girls from disadvantaged communities.

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How to apply?

Interested candidates should submit the following PDF documents written in English before 29 July 2026 to zarastro.karg@gmail.com:

• CV (two pages max) showing your academic history and qualifications;

• A statement of interest explaining your motivation for applying and your expectations from the internship. Your preferred project should be indicated in your statement of interest.

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Available projects 

Title: The nature of diffuse and extended radio sources in the MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey

The research project mainly uses the MeerKAT Absorption Line Survey (MALS) L-band (900–1670 MHz) radio continuum images to inspect and classify large, spatially resolved extended radio galaxies (eRGs). These radio sources display synchrotron-dominated radio emission as a direct imprint of relativistic jet interactions and nuclear activity originating from the central supermassive black hole. A systematic investigation will be conducted to explore the multifaceted properties of these eRGs (including structural morphology, linear extent, and jet distortion) in order to identify the primary mechanism(s) affecting their radio structures.

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Title: Decoding the unusual star formation activity of Arp 261

Bright kpc-sized clumps, which incorporate many individual young massive star clusters (YMCs), host the largest units of star formation (SF) in a galaxy. They represent the smallest structures that can be resolved in high-z clump galaxies, and hence are worth to be studied. This project uses HST and VLT/NACO to investigate YMCs and star-forming clumps in the peculiar galaxy Arp 261 to better understand SF mechanisms in galaxies with extreme environments. Arp 261 is an unusual nearby interacting pair with  unique and disturbed features, including a gaseous bridge-like structure between the two galaxies. Its nature and formation mechanisms, however, are still ambiguous. Depending on the student progress and performance, there is a possibility to analyse new SALT spectroscopic data acquired as part of the SC2RG survey observing campaign.

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Please note that while we try to match your preferences, you may not necessarily be assigned your first-choice project.

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A PDF copy of the guidelines and instructions can be downloaded here. 

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