Stuyvesant Students Win Honors in 2025 International Astronomy and Astrophysics

Stuyvesant seniors Sophie Zhao, Jackson Hayes, and Emery Yin recently won Bronze and Silver Honours at the final round of the 2025 International Astronomy and Astrophysics Competition (IAAC). Zhao, Hayes, and Yin all competed in the Youth category, which is open to 11th to 13th graders who are under the age of 19. Zhao, Hayes, and Yin had to pass a total of three rounds: a qualification round, a pre-finalist round, and a finalist round, with each round increasing in difficulty. To progress, they had to meet a minimum cutoff score in each round. After completing the final round, Zhao was awarded the Silver Honour, while Hayes and Yin received Bronze Honors.

The IAAC is a virtual global competition held annually. With thousands of contestants from around the world, it’s one of the few competitions related to astronomy and astrophysics. The qualifier and pre-final rounds are open-ended problem sets that require written solutions. “You can say this is a more tamed competition version of the International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics,” said Yin in an email interview. 

The final round of the competition took place on September 16. “They sent us a website where we specifically took the final exam. It was mainly multiple choice and had [20] questions. So, technically, one question from the final can literally set you apart from at least hundreds of people,” Yin said.

To maintain the integrity of the competition, the IAAC utilized tracking software on the website. “We were given an option to have either a teacher proctor us or have someone else record (including our screens visible in the recording). We chose the latter because it’s more convenient,” Yin said.

Zhao particularly enjoyed the academic stimulation of the IAAC when testing their contestants on their ability to comprehend scientific papers. She highlighted that it was a valuable learning experience for her professional development. “We were given two research papers and questions based on the papers’ content. As someone interested in doing scientific research, this is great practice for me to really take the time to understand research papers,” Zhao said.

Hayes has always loved physics and found that it was something he resonated with. “I personally live by a principle called reductionism, which is focused on breaking down complicated systems into their basic concepts. I love physics since it’s basically exactly that: taking complicated systems and explaining them in simple terms that we can calculate with,” Hayes said.

Zhao, Hayes, and Yin were able to achieve success without any official mentorship or advising. Instead, they collaborated, fueling each other’s interest in the subject to advance through the rounds. “We’re astro-nerds, so we navigated this all together on our own, as a group,” Yin said.

They also relied on self-studying. “I prepared by reading sections from an introductory textbook on astronomy as well as by practicing with IAAC problems from previous years. I was simultaneously working on some slideshows for my club, which also helped prepare me for IAAC,” Zhao said.

When reflecting on the most difficult stage of the contest, Hayes found that the final round challenged him the most. “The hardest part of the competition was definitely the final round, since it was based more on trivia and quick factual recall as opposed to problem solving. You could always do well on the problem sets if you put time into them, but the final round always kind of felt a little like a lottery in terms of what would actually be on it,” Hayes said.

Yin recommends that future participants have a strong foundational knowledge in astronomy, physics, and calculus. The pre-finalist round requires you to read and understand two research papers, which may be difficult without sufficient prior knowledge. “If you do want to join the competition even if you don’t have any prior astronomy background, study. Their website has recommended readings along with released questions from previous years for you to look over and practice,” Yin said.

Zhao hopes to have more students compete in IAAC, as well as expand the astronomy community at Stuyvesant in general. “In the future, I want more physics and astronomy enthusiasts at Stuyvesant to participate in IAAC. Before graduating, I plan on advertising this competition to more people and hosting IAAC preparation during my club’s meetings,” Zhao said.

Becoming finalists was very rewarding for these Stuyvesant students, as it was a testament to their hard work. Moreover, the competition motivated them to continue pursuing astronomy and astrophysics in the future. “I was even more thrilled when I heard that I earned the Silver Honour after the final round. This honor strengthened my pre-existing passion for astrophysics. It encouraged me to pursue this field later in college,” Zhao said.