A decade after the first detection of gravitational waves transformed astronomy, Bishop's University researcher Dr. John Ruan has been renewed as Canada Research Chair in Multi-Messenger Astrophysics, positioning his team to help answer some of the universe's biggest unanswered questions.
John Ruan
First appointed in 2021, Ruan combines observations of gravitational waves with data from telescopes to probe key astrophysical questions: how neutron stars merge, where the heaviest elements form, and how supermassive black holes grow. The next generation of telescopes will produce vast data for this endeavour, demanding new tools for detection and analysis. Bishop's collaborates with five other Canadian Universities in the $12-million Gravitational Wave Astrophysics Infrastructure Network (GRAIN), supported by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. Dr. Ruan's involvement with GRAIN will enable access to next-generation gravitational wave detectors such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission.
"The detection of gravitational waves in 2015 gave us a completely new way of observing the universe -- one we are still learning to use," said Dr. Ruan. "The renewal of this Chair gives my team the time and resources to pursue phenomena we have not yet observed, including the first detection of gravitational waves from colliding supermassive black holes, which GRAIN and LISA are being built to find."
Using multiple "cosmic messengers" - gravitational waves and light - researchers can investigate phenomena that neither signal alone could reveal. That combination is at the heart of what Ruan's renewed program will pursue.
"For our students, a Canada Research Chair renewal means something very practical: the opportunity to work in a lab that is contributing to research at the frontier of gravitational-wave astronomy," said Kerry Hull, Vice-Principal Academic and Research. "Dr. Ruan's renewal ensures that work continues and that Bishop's students remain part of it."
Canada Research Chairs are awarded through the Canada Research Chairs Program, a federal initiative designed to attract and retain outstanding researchers at Canadian universities. The renewal includes $500,000 in federal support over five years and follows a national peer-review process evaluating both the research program and its impact. Bishop's University currently holds five Canada Research Chairs spanning fields from gravitational-wave astronomy and exoplanet science to Indigenous digital studies, plurilingual education, and youth development.
