Fitxa persona

My main scientific research focuses on stellar structure and evolution and on the characterisation of exoplanetary systems. I lead two main research lines: (1) stellar characterisation using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence techniques, and (2) non-linear asteroseismology in classical pulsating AF-type stars. Since completing my PhD in 2003, I have published nearly 104 papers and book chapters, around 67 of them in first-quartile international journals (more than 4,500 citations, h-index = 35, according to ADS). I am first author of 16 publications, 11 of them in first-quartile journals (378 citations, h-index as first author = 12). These works cover topics ranging from exoplanet characterisation and habitability to stellar characterisation using ML/AI, as well as theoretical and observational asteroseismology. I am also the developer of one of the most up-to-date stellar pulsation codes, GraCo. I collaborate in two ongoing international projects focused on the detection and characterisation of exoplanets orbiting K-type stars. These results have been presented at more than 60 international conferences, including six invited talks, and I have delivered 18 seminars at international research centres.

Since September 2025, I have been a Senior Lecturer at the University of Valencia. Between 2021 and 2025, I held a contract for excellent researchers at the University of Valencia, funded by the Generalitat Valenciana under the GenT programme. This project enabled the creation of a new research group within the Department, led by me and devoted to asteroseismology and stellar characterisation. Previously, I was an Ayudante Doctor at the Polytechnic University of Madrid (2019–2021) and a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellow at the University of Birmingham (2017–2019). Earlier in my career, I held several postdoctoral positions at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía–CSIC (2000–2004, 2006–2009), the Centro de Astrobiología–INTA/CSIC (2009–2013), and the Observatoire de Paris–Meudon (2004–2006), including a Juan de la Cierva fellowship.

I have been involved in nearly all major space missions related to asteroseismology and exoplanet science, including CoRoT (France/ESA), Kepler and TESS (NASA), and Cheops, Ariel, Plato, and HAYDN (ESA). I have led several work packages in CoRoT and Plato, and in particular, within Plato, I am responsible for the MSAP1 module (one of five) of the stellar pipeline. I am currently the Spanish Principal Investigator (PI) of the ESA mission proposal HAYDN, which was submitted to the ESA M7 call, reached Phase 0/CDF, and has been resubmitted to the ongoing ESA M8 call. HAYDN aims to perform asteroseismology in open and globular clusters. Spain is the third-largest contributor to this mission, and I am a member of its core team. I am also PI of the Spanish National Project “IP y coordinador en España de la propuesta de misión espacial M de la ESA, HAYDN”. Previously, between 2010 and 2012, I was the PI of the ESA S-mission proposal PlanetVision, an international project on exoplanetary system characterisation involving six countries, 25 institutions, and over 125 researchers, with Spain as both the scientific leader (under my coordination) and the industrial prime. PlanetVision reached the final evaluation stage, although the selected mission was Cheops.

My teaching experience includes courses at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the University of Valencia, the University of Birmingham, and the Valencian International University (VIU), where I served as Head of the Master’s programme in Astronomy and Astrophysics. I have co-supervised two PhD theses and am currently co-supervising and mentoring two additional PhD candidates. In addition, I have supervised 10 Master’s theses and participated in eight PhD examination committees, as well as numerous Master’s and Bachelor’s thesis juries. In terms of outreach, I have written several popular science articles in magazines and blogs, including one that appeared on the cover of AstronomiA Magazine (December 2017). I have also delivered outreach talks and seminars in various initiatives (e.g. Pint of Science, Pub La Goma) and participated in public engagement events such as Caos y Ciencia, Expociencia, and Open Days at the University of Birmingham.

I regularly serve as a referee for international journals (including MNRAS, A&A, ApJ, ApJ Letters, New Astronomy, and Physics and Astronomy Reports) and as a member of Time Allocation Committees for facilities such as the Hubble Space Telescope (Cycle 27), the Liverpool Telescope, and the James Webb Space Telescope (Cycles 2 and 3). I am also a reviewer for the European Commission and the Spanish State Research Agency (AEI), including programmes such as Juan de la Cierva and the National Space Plan. I have organised more than ten international conferences as a member of the Scientific and/or Local Organising Committees (including the Iberian Meetings in Asteroseismology I–X and special sessions at EAS meetings), chairing three of them.

Finally, I am a member of the European Astronomical Society (EAS), the Spanish Astronomical Society (SEA), the International Astronomical Union (IAU), and the Royal Spanish Society of Physics (RSEF). Between 2013 and 2015, I also worked in the R&D department of the private company SapTools, focusing on Big Data analysis.