Helgi Rafn Hrodmarsson Research Group

“He attacked everything in life with a mix of extraordinary genius and naive incompetence, and it was often difficult to tell which was which.” 

-Douglas Adams

Welcome!

My name is Helgi Rafn Hrodmarsson and I am Chargé de Recherche (Research Officer) for the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in France. My home base is in the Laboratoire Inter-universitaire des Systemes Atmospheriques (LISA) in Créteil (South East of Paris). I have identified as a laboratory astrochemist since I was mistaken for one in 2017, but I am originally a chemist / spectroscopist by training.

I used to call myself “The Cosmic Chemist”, or “the fledgling scientist who just wanted to uncover the mysteries of the cosmic origins of life by shooting laser beams at stuff and things”. I used this pseudonym because there was no way anybody outside of my native Iceland would ever remember my surname. The Cosmic Chemist pseudonym was pretty useful to me for many years as it gave me an outlet to write about whatever I wanted to write about and hone my writing skills. Today, it is a gentle reminder of a struggling young scientist who just wanted to do something fun. And now they are no longer fledling, but in full flight.

I used to write more frequently about things are somewhat linked to science and research, such as book reviews and sci-fi blogs. For the past few years, I have more or less ceased these activities because my writing activities (and energies) are now mostly devoted to articles, proposals, and emails.

Now (as of 2026), this website is mostly used to update my teaching and research activities.

Enjoy your stay.

Helgi Rafn Hrodmarsson, Ph.D.