UNT Physics set record-breaking representation for our university at the American Astronomical Society's 235th meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii last weekend. The AAS was established in 1899 and currently boasts about 7,700 members including physicists, mathematicians, geologists, engineers, and others whose research and educational interests lie within the broad spectrum of subjects now comprising the astronomical sciences. This year eight representatives of the UNT Physics department attended the event: six gradute students, one undergrad, and a professor.

"In the past, usually only one UNT member attended the AAS meetings, but over years, with the growth of our astronomy program in the Physics Department, more people, both faculty/staff and students have attended," said Dr. Ohad Shemmer, principle investigator of the Gemini Research Project based in Hawaii and UNT associate professor studying black hole mass and accretion rate. "This was a record year traveling to the conference with seven students, who presented three regular posters and one iPoster+."

The iPoster is an interactive, multimedia presentation that can include including high-resolution expandable images, high-definition videos, audio narration, video interviews, viewer surveys, and more. UNT Physics graduate student Brandon Matthews created his to present an update on the ongoing Gemini project, which is gathering near-infrared spectroscopy of more than 400 distant quasars.

The students in attendance learned about recent discoveries and advancements in all aspects of astronomy and space science and participated in multiple astronomy-related events.

The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity's scientific understanding of the universe. To learn more about the AAS and the meetings, visit https://aas.org/

To learn more about the Astronomy Department at UNT, visit http://astronomy.unt.edu/