Francesco Tombesi

Francesco Tombesi is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Rome "Tor Vergata." After an extensive research career in the United States, at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and the University of Maryland, College Park, he returned to Italy in 2017 through the "Rita Levi Montalcini" call for the Return of Young Researchers by the Ministry of University and Research (MUR). He currently conducts research at the INFN - Roma Tor Vergata section and at the INAF - Astronomical Observatory of Rome.

His primary research focuses on the physics of matter accretion and expulsion from supermassive black holes (SMBH) in active galactic nuclei (AGN), using X-ray observations collected by space-based observatories. His research on the "breathing" of black holes, particularly the origin of the winds produced by black holes, such as powerful ultra-fast outflows (UFOs), and their feedback on galaxies, has led to a cover article in Nature, the world’s most authoritative scientific journal, and earned him numerous awards, including NASA’s Medal for Scientific Achievement and the Aspen Institute Italy Award.

His research interests also extend to the study of multi-scale and multi-phase winds in AGN, ranging from the immediate vicinity of SMBH event horizons to the scale of galaxy clusters. His work includes theoretical studies on black hole winds and plasma photo-ionization, as well as research on the impact of SMBH activity on the galactic habitability of terrestrial planets. He also investigates accretion and winds in X-ray binary systems and the implications of astrophysical observations for fundamental physics.

Francesco is actively involved in multi-messenger astrophysics (ranging from electromagnetic waves to astroparticles and gravitational waves) and the study of extragalactic transient objects. He is a member of several international collaborations involving new or future terrestrial and space-based observatories, including Rubin LSST, CTA, NICER (NASA), IXPE (NASA/ASI), XRISM (JAXA/NASA/ESA), LISA (ESA/NASA), and NewAthena (ESA/NASA).