Email: alan[dot]mcconnachie[at]nrc[dash]cnrc[dot]gc[dot]ca

Address:
NRC Herzberg Astronomy and Astrophysics (NRC-HAA)
Dominion Astrophysical Observatory
5071 West Saanich Road, Victoria
British Columbia, Canada V9E 2E7

Career history:

• 2022 – Optical Astronomy Technology Manager, Astronomy Technology Directorate, NRC-HAA
• 2021 – Elected Member of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists
• 2018 – 2021 Science Advisor to the Astronomy Technology Directorate & Lead of the Science and Projects Team, NRC-HAA
• 2011 – Research Officer / Instrument Scientist, NRC-HAA
• 2011 – Adjunct Assistant (2011), Associate (2016), Full (2021) Professor, University of Victoria
• 2008 – 2011 Plaskett Fellow / Research Associate, NRC Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics
• 2006 – 2008 Research Fellow, Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, University of Victoria
• 2005 – 2008 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Victoria

Education:

• 2002 – 2005 Ph.D, Astrophysics, Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, U.K.
  Advisor: Dr. Michael Irwin, Thesis: “Satellites and substructure in the Local Group”
• 1998 – 2002 M.Sci. Astrophysics, First Class Honours, University of St. Andrews, U.K.
  

Publications and Citation Summary: (current as of December 2021)

• 160 publications submitted, in press or published in peer-reviewed journals
• 11500+ citations for all publications / h-index of 56

Graduate & Postdoctoral supervision:

I am always enthusiastic to supervise students (undergrad and graduate) on topics relating to nearby galaxies and instrumentation. Please contact me if you are interested on working with me on these topics.

• 2021 – Dr. Christian Hayes, NRC post-doctoral fellow
• 2021 – Simon Smith (MSc) The galaxy luminosity function of the Local Group
• 2020 – Jaclyn Jensen (PhD) The outer reaches of the Milky Way seen with Gaia and UNIONS
• 2015 – 2022 Mojtaba Taheri (PhD) Astrometry with next generation facilities (w/ David Andersen)
• 2016 – 2021 Dr. Clare Higgs (PhD) The Solo dwarf galaxy survey
• 2017 – 2020 Dr. Guillaume Thomas, NRC post-doctoral fellow
• 2018 – 2020 Jaclyn Jensen (MSc) Exploring the outer halo of the Milky Way with the Canada-France Imaging Survey
• 2016 – 2020 Dr. Nicolas Fantin (PhD) – White dwarfs and hot stellar populations in the Galaxy (w/ Pat Côté)
• 2012 – 2017 Dr. Paolo Turri (PhD) – Photometry and astrometry with multi-conjugate adaptive optics (w/ David Andersen)
• 2014 – 2016 Clare Higgs (MSc) – Isolated dwarf galaxies in the Local Universe