Namibia

Dr. Michael Backes serves as Associate Professor and Head of the astrophysics section and the Namibian H.E.S.S. group at the University of Namibia (UNAM). He also holds positions as Extraordinary Associate Professor at North-West University in South Africa and Academic Visitor at the University of Oxford in the UK. He earned both his MSc and PhD in gamma-ray astronomy from TU Dortmund University in Germany.

His professional distinctions include membership in the Global Young Academy (GYA), where he was also elected to its Executive Committee. He has received a UNAM Meritorious Award for outstanding academic achievement within the Faculty of Science and the GfKl Application Award from the German Data Science Society. The South African National Research Foundation has rated him as an Established Researcher, placing him within the top 1.5% of researchers of his age cohort. In addition to serving as Namibia’s lead on a Global Challenges Research Fund project, he is the founding head of the Virtual Institute for Scientific Computing and Artificial Intelligence at UNAM.

Dr. Backes’ primary research investigates gamma-ray loud Active Galaxies, focusing on their multi-wavelength and multi-messenger properties and long-term variability, primarily using data from the H.E.S.S. gamma-ray telescopes. His broader scientific interests include the development of advanced data analysis techniques for very high-energy gamma-ray astronomy and site characterization for next-generation observatories. As Co-Principal Investigator of the Africa Millimetre Telescope (AMT) project, he is instrumental in its development and scientific planning. Beyond these technical pursuits, he leads initiatives with societal impact, including projects in astro-tourism and archaeoastronomy within Namibia.