Highlighted Research
The McDonald Institute is celebrating the launch of the Beading Astroparticle Physics project, an initiative that brings Indigenous Knowledges and Perspectives and astroparticle physics into conversation with each other. Grounded in Indigenous leadership and relational ethics, the project reimagines how astroparticle physics can explore, understand, and relate to the universe.
Research
Dr. Wade investigates the structure, evolution, origin and impact of magnetic fields in stars. His research concentrates on intermediate and high mass stars, which are the evolutionary progenitors of most white dwarfs, neutron stars and stellar-mass black holes. He is the Principal Investigator (PI) of the Magnetism in Massive Stars (MiMeS) collaboration, co-PI of the Binarity and Magnetic Interactions in Stars (BinaMIcS) project, and past-Chair of the international BRITE Executive Science Team (BEST) for the BRITE-Constellation mission.
In the context of RMC’s Space Surveillance Research Laboratory (SSRL), Dr. Wade has also directed research related to the characterization of the structure, surface composition, and rotation of artificial satellites.
In collaboration with Dr. D. Lussier (Queen’s University), Dr. Wade employs beadwork as a knowledge mobilization methodology to communicate complex astrophysical concepts to postsecondary learners and the broader public.
Dr. Wade was awarded RMC’s Cowan Prize for Excellence in Research in 2019. His current research is focused on exploring exotic pathways to magnetic field generation in massive stars, understanding magnetic field properties and implications at later evolutionary phases of intermediate-mass and massive stars, and understanding non-thermal X-ray and radio emission from magnetic hot stars.
Recent Publications
- "New Observations of the Strongly Magnetic O Star NGC 1624-2 Reveal Its Magnetic South Pole", Seadrow, S., Petit, V., Bohlender, D., David-Uraz, A., MacDonald, J., Maíz Apellániz, J., Oksala, M., Shultz, M., and Wade, G. A., (2026), The Astrophysical Journal, 1003, 239
- "Averaged spin state catalog framework for uncontrolled space objects", Benson, Conor J., Earl, Michael A., Wade, Gregg A., Scheeres, Daniel J., and Holzinger, Marcus J., (2026), Advances in Space Research, 77, 9211-9229
- "Discovery of a Rapidly Evolving Global Magnetic Field in the M Dwarf YZ Cet and Constraints on the Magnetic Field of Its Planet YZ Cet b", Biswas, Ayan, Folsom, Colin P., Barron, James A., Wade, Gregg A., Bellotti, Stefano, and Trigilio, Corrado, (2026), The Astrophysical Journal, 997, 268
- "NIRPS tightens the mass estimate of GJ 3090 b and detects a planet near the stellar rotation period", Lamontagne, Pierrot, Weisserman, Drew, Cadieux, Charles, … Wade, Gregg, and the NIRPS team, (2026), Astronomy and Astrophysics, 706, A278
- "A Search for Chemical Stratification and Magnetic Fields in Eight Field Blue Horizontal-branch Stars", Kafando, Issouf, Wade, Gregg, David-Uraz, Alexandre, LeBlanc, Francis, and Robert, Carmelle, (2025), The Astrophysical Journal, 992, 29
- "A Magnetic Field Detection in the Massive O-type Bright Giant 63 Oph", Barron, James A., Wade, Gregg A., Holgado, Gonzalo, and Simón-Díaz, Sergio, (2025), The Astrophysical Journal, 991, 79
- "Magnetic Field Monitoring of Four Massive A─F Supergiants", Wade, Gregg A., Oksala, Mary, Neiner, Coralie, Boucher, Étienne, and Barron, James A., (2025), The Astrophysical Journal, 988, L38
- "The highly magnetic Wolf-Rayet binary HD 45166 resolved with VLTI/GRAVITY", Deshmukh, K., Shenar, T., Mérand, A., Sana, H., Marchant, P., Wade, G. A., Bodensteiner, J., Chené, A.-N., Frost, A. J., Gilkis, A., Langer, N., and Oskinova, L., (2025), Astronomy and Astrophysics, 695, L20
A complete list of publications is available at: The SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System .
In the News
- Scientists unlock mysteries of magnetars, the most magnetic objects in the universe
- New type of star gives clue to mysterious origin of magnetars
- A Companion for Regulus
- NGC 1624-2 has a complex magnetospheric structure, observations reveal
- BRITE-Constellation helps to reveal the power of shock waves in a nova explosion
- BRITE-Constellation: Tiny Satellites for Big Science (video)
- A new star in the sky
- Spots on supergiant star drive spirals in stellar wind
- Iota Orionis: pulsating beacon of a constellation
- Magnetic stars responsible for LIGO’s “heavy” stellar-mass black holes?
- Measuring stellar magnetic fields with HARPSpol in the Southern Hemisphere
- X ray emission (and absorption) from the giant magnetosphere of the star NGC 1624-2
- Discovery of a magnetic field in epsilon Lupi: the first double-magnetic massive binary system
- Monitoring stellar magnetospheres
- Discovery of the most strongly magnetized O-type star
- Spots spotted on the bright star Vega
Graduate students
Current students
- Noah Budz (MSc, Queen’s)
- Iris Bermejo Lozano (PhD, Charles)
- Lindsay Holmes (PhD, RMC)
- James Barron (PhD, Queen's)
Past students
- Ayan Biswas (PhD, Queen’s) - Postdoctoral Fellow, IUCAA, India
- Angelo Hollett (MSc, Queen’s)
- Erik Stacey (MSc, RMC)
- James Barron (MSc, Queen's)
- Melissa Munoz (PhD, Queen’s) - withdrew
- Giuseppe Ramacieri (MSc, RMC) - Canadian Forces
- James Sikora (PhD, Queen's) - Postdoctoral Fellow, Sherbrooke university
- Zsolt Keszthelyi (PhD, Queen's) - Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Amsterdam
- Michael Earl (PhD, RMC) - Assistant Professor, RMC
- Jason Shaw (MSc, RMC) (with Dr. Donald Bédard) - Canadian Forces
- Matthew Shultz (PhD, Queen's) - Annie Jump Cannon Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Delaware
- Carl Clancy (MSc, RMC) (with Dr. Donald Bédard) - Flt Lt, Australian Air Force
- Alexandre David-Uraz (PhD, Queen's) - NSERC Postdoctoral fellow, University of Delaware
- Alex Willison (MSc) (with Dr. Donald Bédard)
- James Silvester (PhD)
- Andrew Jolley (MSc) - Australian Air Force
- Donald Bédard (PhD) - Canadian Forces
- Michael Earl (MSc)
- Jason Grunhut (PhD) - Data Scientist, Telus Canada
- Matthew Shultz (MSc)
- M. Oksala (PhD) (with Prof. Stanley Owocki) - Assistant Professor, California Lutheran University
- Véronique Petit (PhD) (with Prof. Laurent Drissen) - Assistant Professor, University of Delaware
- Katherine Likuski (MSc) - Canadian Forces
- Jason Grunhut (MSc)
- Mouhamadou Thiam (MSc) (with Prof. Francis LeBlanc) - PhD Candidate, Moncton University
- Jennifer Power (MSc) - Observing assistant, LBTO, USA
- Colin Folsom (MSc) - Postdoc, Toulouse, France
- James Silvester (MSc)
- Dominic Drouin (MSc) - Canadian Forces
- Noémie Johnson (MSc) - MD graduate, Canadian Forces physician
Comments
Comments or suggestions are welcomed at: bryce.bennett@rmc-cmr.ca