Rooted Under the Stars

I was honored to be approached by The Adler Planetarium for their new Google Arts & Culture exhibition “Raíces Bajo Las Estrellas: Rooted Under the Stars” to demonstrate the amazing contributions of Latinx and Hispanic individuals in the US to the fields of astronomy, astrophysics, astrophotography, and science in general; show barriers to be overcome in a field entrenched in racial biases; and provide advice and inspiration to future generations of our community.

We need to keep working toward a more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming environment in STEM fields in general, and astronomy in particular. We all, no matter our background, are astronomers at one point in our lives—we all, as kids, experience the night sky for the first time, we all wonder about the Moon and the stars when we first discover them. We need to take a hard look at when and why a wondrous interest in astronomy is disproportionately discouraged—whether directly or indirectly—in minorities.

Dr. Jorge Perez-Gallego for “Rooted Under the Stars”

I was particularly impressed by the audio responses from a group of talented high school students—on their own voices—to our full interviews.

See the final product now after the jump.