University of Arizona Department of Astronomy and Steward Observatory

Tune into a deep-dive radio segment on the Sky School, featuring Assistant Director of Education Rob McGehee! Listen here: https://bit.ly/4dKtTOf 🎧

The student-led CatSat mission has captured and transmitted its first pictures of the Earth! These images represent a major step in the continuing process of commissioning the spacecraft.

The above image was taken with the far-focused metrology camera on August 1st and received by controllers on the ground a short time later. The picture shows the limb of the Earth with the deep blackness of space on the right. On the Earth, a mix of low and high altitude clouds is seen covering the top of the Baja Peninsula. To the left of the clouds in the center of the image, the coastline of the Sea of Cortez can be seen.

See the full gallery here: https://bit.ly/4dsVwer

Ansh Gupta graduated this spring with a B.S. in Astronomy & Physics. He's the winner of both the Outstanding Senior Award for the Department of Astronomy as well as the Overall Outstanding Senior Award for the College of Science. Read his full interview: https://bit.ly/4doNiDX

Did you know that the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab offers behind-the-scenes tours, where you can witness the next generation of giant telescope mirrors being made? Sign up here for this incredible experience: https://bit.ly/3Aad6pi

Reflecting hope: in recent years, two of the best mirror and optics experts on earth--Roger Angel and Daewook Kim of the University of Arizona--have directed their interest toward Concentrating Solar Power (CSP), with the hope of feeding the grid and perhaps even removing carbon from Earth's atmosphere. Read more: https://bit.ly/3Lwa29p

Arizona Illustrated highlights University of Arizona's Sky School! The video explores the immersive overnight program atop Mt. Lemmon, where students peer through telescopes, take tree core samples, and learn all about the ecosystems that surround them: https://bit.ly/3y6q6eR

The student-led CatSat mission has begun sending its first transmissions! The signal from CatSat is also being picked up by amateur radio ground stations all over the world via the SatNOGS network. Follow CatSat's real-time trajectory: https://bit.ly/4bS0Jvg

Congratulations to Prof. Wen-fai Fong of Northwestern University for being awarded Steward Observatory's 2024 Marc Aaronson Prize! The prize celebrates the life and research of Steward Observatory astronomer Marc Aaronson and recognizes promising early-career astronomers who match Marc’s spirit of joy and innovation.

We look forward to hosting you in the Fall for our colloquium and public evening lecture series. Read more: https://bit.ly/467qE0t

Northwestern Professor Wen-fai Fong Honored with Steward Observatory’s 2024 Marc Aaronson Prize | Steward Observatory Northwestern Professor Wen-fai Fong Honored with Steward Observatory’s 2024 Marc Aaronson Prize July 3, 2024 Image The prize celebrates the life and research of Steward Observatory astronomer Marc Aaronson and recognizes promising early-career astronomers who match Marc’s spirit of joy and innov...

First light for Steward Observatory was 102 years ago today!

The original 36-inch telescope (pictured) was first pointed at Venus on July 17th, 1922, where it was observed through an eyepiece. Photographic first light occurred on August 10th, 1922, when Professor Andrew E. Douglass (pictured) imaged the planet Mars.

Interested in some summer learning? This spring, to mark its 20-year anniversary, the Large Binocular Telescope Observatory hosted panel discussions on the history of the telescope, the innovations that have continued to put the LBT at the forefront of space science, and science highlights from the telescope’s twenty years of operation—from quasar research to the quest for life-bearing planets. You can watch a recording of the conversations here: https://www.lbto.org/lbt20th/

This June, astrophotographer Travis Deyoe (Outreach Supervisor and Program Leader at Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter) captured this photo of the Ring Nebula (M57) using a QHY600 imaging camera on the Phillips 24” telescope. This image is the longest total exposure taken through the SkyCenter telescopes at an incredible 53.25 hours! The Ring Nebula is over 2,000 light years away, and measures a full light year across. Learn more about Travis' work: https://bit.ly/4bxubWZ

Last night, we were treated to our own special “fireworks” as we looked up from Tucson to watch the plume from the Firefly Aerospace rocket launch carrying the student-led CatSat mission! (Could you see it in the sky from where you were, too? Share your photos!) Learn more about the project: https://bit.ly/3zvG42q

A University of Arizona graduate student and team discover most distant supernovas ever found. https://bit.ly/3Rs2KH1

**EDIT** The countdown begins: the student-led CatSat mission will launch July 3 at 9:03pm PDT (**updated time**)! If you're at UArizona, keep a sharp eye out: the rocket plume should be visible in Tucson around 160 seconds after launch! A livestream starts 30 minutes before launch: https://www.youtube.com/live/D7pzJ129XPM

🔭 High rankings for space! 🔭 This week, in the 2024-2025 Best Global Universities ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report, UArizona earned its best scores in the space science category, placing No. 8 overall, No. 6 in the U.S. and No. 2 among public universities. These top marks reflect our research reputation, along with the number of citations and publications by UArizona astronomers. Read more: https://bit.ly/4cAYCwu.

Native American representatives capped off the Tribal Leaders Summit with a trip to Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter for an evening of stargazing – and a quick tutorial from SkyCenter staff on how to see the "green flash" through binoculars at sunset. Read more: https://bit.ly/3XJSmOC

"A supernova discovery machine."

Steward Observatory graduate student Christa DeCoursey led a study that identified 79 supernova candidates using NASA's JWST. 38 of these had exploded when the universe was just 3.3 billion years old, or 25% of its current age. This study is the first of its kind and demonstrates the power of JWST as a "supernova discovery machine." Read more: https://bit.ly/3XsE5FZ.

Congratulations to Christa and the JADES team on their outstanding work!

(JADES = JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey)

The Giant Magellan Telescope reached a new milestone today: the telescope enclosure is ready for construction! The enclosure will house enormous mirrors crafted at Steward Observatory’s Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab, and will enable some of the most important scientific discoveries of our lifetimes. Read more (and watch the video explainer): https://bit.ly/4bVtWGg

Steward Observatory astronomer Kevin Hainline found the oldest galaxy ever observed! Graduate student Jakob Helton then led a study detailing the properties of this record breaking galaxy.

At redshifts of 14.2 and 13.9, JADES galaxies GS-z14-0 (pictured) and GS-z14-1 both break the previous record for most distant galaxy observed. The universe was a mere 290 million years old when light from these galaxies began traveling towards us. This is only a fraction of the current age of the universe, which is 13 billion years. These galaxies, and other JWST observations, have forced astronomers to rethink our understanding of galaxy evolution. Read more here: https://bit.ly/3XhP8lx.

TIMESTEP's 2023-24 Research Apprenticeship cohort wrapped up their year by sharing their work in a second poster session held at Steward Observatory. The Research Apprenticeship program supports UArizona physics and astronomy majors in their 2nd year of studies to build their technical and professional skills, preparing them for success in research and internships.

Congratulations to these ten outstanding student researchers!

On April 8th, a total solar eclipse passed over the contiguous United States, and many in our department travelled to see it! Here are photos that graduate students Yu-Hsiu Huang and Haowen Zhang captured. How was your solar eclipse experience?

Our undergraduate students conduct leading research across many fields in astronomy, from the study of planets around other stars to galaxies forming 13 billion years ago!

During the University of Arizona's Undergraduate Research Week, twelve undergraduate students presented at the Astronomy Undergrad Research Symposium at Steward Observatory (pictured). The event showcased a wide range of astronomy research and included flash talks by presenters and a poster session. The event was kicked off with a keynote address by Dr. Carlos Vargas, who spoke about overcoming obstacles, the importance of finding an encouraging mentor and community, and developing persistence. It was an excellent way for student researchers to gain presentation experience and for attendees to learn about the many different areas of research within astronomy.

Congratulations to our Spring 2024 College of Science Graduate Student Award Recipients! Haowen Zhang, Logan Pearce and Haley Bowden received CoS awards for their accomplishments in Scholarship/Research, Service, and Teaching, respectively. Read more: https://bit.ly/3KaK6PV

Congratulations to Bao "Tintin" Nguyen on receiving the 2024 Merrill P. Freeman Medal! Nguyen is graduating summa cm laude with honors with a Bachelor of Science in physics, astronomy and mathematics. Read Tintin's interview: https://bit.ly/4dJbNgk

Gabe Weible graduates this spring with his B.S. in Physics and Astronomy. "I am most proud of seeing my research project through to the end, from raw images to submitting a paper for publication." Read his full interview: https://bit.ly/3wnW7yd

Charity Woodrum’s story is full of hard blows and extraordinary successes: she was the first in her family to graduate from high school, and unfathomable tragedy struck when she lost both her husband and young son in an accident. She turned her attention to astronomy, and she found her way to Steward Observatory to work with Dr. Marcia Rieke as part of the James Webb Space Telescope NIRCam team.

As Charity prepares to graduate with her PhD in Astronomy & Astrophysics, she reflects on her time at Steward Observatory. Her advice for other astronomy students: “Seek out collaborative environments and people. I chose Steward because of how collaborative the department is, and it was the best decision I could have made for my career and my personal life.” Read her full interview: https://bit.ly/3Wxmoob

Two of our postdocs, Griffin Hosseinzadeh and Azalee Bostroem, have several quotes in this article on SN 2023ixf in Scientific American! It is one of the brightest and nearest SNe in the last decade, and is teaching us about the final stages of massive stars before they explode.

Nearby Supernova Gives Unique View of a Dying Star’s Last Days Astronomers are piecing together the final moments of supernova 2023ixf and learning more about it than any other in recent history