A current Gatton Academy student and recent alumna presented their research findings on Thursday, January 9 at the 223rd meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) in Washington, D.C.
James “Marcus” Hughes of Marion, a current senior, and Mary Spraggs of Danville, a 2013 Gatton Academy graduate and current WKU student, both presented posters. Their research is mentored by Dr. Steven Gibson, Assistant Professor in the WKU Department of Physics and Astronomy.
Hughes’ poster was titled A Survey of Hidden Molecular Clouds in the Milky Way, and Spraggs’ was A Multi-wavelength Analysis of Cold Evolving Interstellar Clouds. While both students have presented their findings multiple times previously, this was their first time presenting at a national conference.
Gibson said that senior colleagues approached him at the meeting to say how impressed they were with the students’ presentations.
Writing from the conference, Spraggs commented, “We’ve been to talks not only about breakthrough science, but policy, demographics, career preparation, networking, software development, and education. It’s really given us a new view of the culture in the field and the current issues and topics of discussion.”
Spraggs added that she had had numerous talks about graduate programs and graduate research opportunities at the conference.
The conference was attended by over 3,000 astronomers, educators, journalists, and guests. Keynote speakers included Edwin C. Krupp and Neil deGrasse Tyson.
In addition to Dr. Gibson, Hughes, and Spraggs, the WKU delegation also included student Joshua Williams of Bowling Green and Drs. Michael Carini, Richard Gelderman, Ting-Hui Lee, and Charles McGruder, all faculty in the WKU Department of Physics and Astronomy.
