When we look at the night sky, we are filled with wonder and curiosity, dreaming of the world that is beyond our very own here on Earth. Harvard football senior running back Mekhi Moore is trying to uncover more of the science behind those stars in the sky.

During the last academic year, Moore worked with Harvard's astrophysics department studying and researching isotopic ratios in high mass protostars and how they can develop and lead to water and oceans in outside solar systems.

Moore's interest and love for astrology and space is rooted in his childhood wonder for what is outside our world.

"I vividly remember reading a book when I was younger about a little kid who gets shot off into space. It invigorated my passion for space," Moore said. "It made me start thinking about things in that nature more. As I got older, I really developed a love of science. I took an astronomy class in high school and thought that it could really be the future for me."

Most of Moore's research revolved around independent work. Moore would receive copious amounts of data from a telescope in Hawaii, then utilized coding methods to try and find trends in the data.

"A lot of the work was looking at different graphs and numbers and trying to make sense of what we were receiving from Hawaii," Moore said. "A lot of it was spending nights in the library with coding notebooks. It was a lot of work but worth it in the long run."
A challenge for Moore in his project was diving into a new realm of science that was outside of his previous experience.

"This project was completely outside of my comfort zone. A lot of my previous work focused on exoplanets, planets outside our solar system. This project involved a lot of chemistry and information revolving around stars, which was a new challenge for me." Moore said. "With any good science, you have to find out why you are doing this, and I quickly realized why it was beneficial and learned to have fun with it every day."

"I'm most proud of what happened throughout the process," Moore said. "I am the first person to do this specific research on the isotopic fractionation of a high mass protostar. It's never been done before for this particular molecule, being able to be that first person to make some sort of scientific breakthrough is huge for me."

Inspired by his love for education and science, Moore also gave back in the classroom over the summer as a teaching volunteer with AmeriCorps, developing a curriculum for fifth grade students in disenfranchised areas.

"It was honestly one of the most fun experiences I've had," Moore said. "I learned a lot about myself and about the impact that I want to have in the future with the communities I am working with. It was a 10 out of 10 experience and seeing smiles on kids' faces every day and getting them excited about learning really reinvigorated my passion for learning as well."