Wayne Neil Edwards was born in London, Ontario, on 1977-07-23. He attended Cleardale Public School and H.B. Beal Secondary School, then did an undergraduate degree in Astronomy and Geophysics (Planetary Science) at Western University. He wrote an undergraduate thesis on "Modelling of Lunar Gravity Anomalies" and graduated with Distinction in 2000. Then Edwards went on to the University of Calgary, where he earned a Master of Science degree in Geophysics in 2003.
