中性氢天文学，星际介质，超新星遗迹， 高能宇宙线，活动星系核，射电天文（技术）
银河系星际介质研究团组。担任过IAU两届执委。发现并命名两颗超新星遗迹和证认一颗罕见的高能宇宙线源（入选中国十大天文科技进展）。近期带领团组参与宇宙线的工作并有合作成果发表于《自然》《物理综述快报》和《科学》等期刊。已发表100多篇文章，被引用2千多次。
1.Lhaaso Collaboration; Cao Z., …, Tian W.W. et al. Science, 2021, ‘Peta-electron volt gamma-ray emission from the Crab Nebula’, 373, 425
2.Lhaaso Collaboration; Cao Z., …, Tian W.W. et al. Nature, 2021,‘Ultrahigh-energy photons up to 1.4 peta-electron volts from 12 γ-ray Galactic sources’, 594, 33
3. Zhu H.，Tian W.W., Li A., Zhang M.F., MNRAS, 2017,‘The gas-to-extinction ratio and the gas distribution in the Galaxy', 471, 3494
4. Tian W.W., Leahy D.A. ApJ Letters,2014，‘SNR G349.7+0.2, A gamma-ray source in the far 3 kpc a arm of Galactic center’, 783, 1
5. Tian W.W., Leahy D.A. et al. ApJ Letters, 2011，‘Tycho SN 1572: A Naked Ia SNR without Associated Ambient Molecular Cloud’, 729, 15
6. Tian W.W., Leahy D.A., Haverkorn M., Jiang B. ApJ Letters,2008，‘Discovery of the radio and X-ray counterpart of TeV ray source HESS J1731347’, 679, 85