Video credit: UTRGV
UTRGV Dr. Cristina V. Torres Memorial Astronomical Observatory Inauguration Ceremony Held
Thursday, May 24, 2018
Announcements, Alumni
By Maria Elena Hernandez
Observatory (UTRGV Photo by David Pike)
BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS – A beautiful evening on Saturday, May 5, made it the perfect setting for the official dedication of the UTRGV Dr. Cristina V. Torres Memorial Astronomical Observatory at Resaca de la Palma State Park in Brownsville. Hundreds of people gathered to celebrate and remember Torres, honored posthumously by the university with the naming of its observatory in her memory. Torres, who died three years ago, was a Center for Gravitational Wave Astronomy (CGWA)research assistant professor at legacy institution UTB-TSC, and is remembered as a scholar who eagerly shared her knowledge with her students and the community. Her family attended the event and thanked the visitors and all those involved in the observatory naming. The event brought out local children and families, who toured the observatory and had a chance to get a much closer look at the stars through several telescopes set up outside the facility starting at nightfall. UTRGV students also offered activities and science demonstrations, including the Physics Circus, and also offered information on some of their research.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
To learn more about the UTRGV Dr. Cristina V. Torres Memorial Astronomical Observatory, contact theDepartment of Physics and Astronomy in Brownsville at (956-882-6779) or in Edinburg at (956-665-3521).
ABOUT UTRGV
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to the University of Texas System and other institutions.
UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville campus), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American campus), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.