ISYA28 Photo Gallery

click on the stamps to get a full resolution reproduction of the photographs


Opening of the school

25th of July


Left to right: Alberto Carramiñana, Michele Gerbaldi, José Guichard, Francisco Soto and Itziar Aretxaga
photo by Derick Cornwall


The faculty


Left to right and top to bottom: Claudia Mendes talking to Luis Ramírez after her class, Rafael Guzmán, Elena Terlevich, Enrique Gaztañaga, Michele Gerbaldi, David Hughes, Vahram Chavushyan, Massimo Turatto, Guillermo Tenorio-Tagle,Bill Wall,Susana Lizano, Rodolfo Barbá, Manuel Peimbert and Ed Guinan.
Photos (8,11) by Gorgonio Cerón and (the rest) by Itziar Aretxaga



The assistants to the faculty


Olga Vega, Abelardo Mercado and Julia Arias
photos by Itziar Aretxaga



Glimpses at miscellaneous academic activities at INAOE


Discussions during the poster sessions, and participants at one of the Observational Techniques Labs.



Students in the classroom taking notes, and asking questions




August 1st, presentations of the best posters selected by the students: Faviola Molina, Martha Bello, Juan Rafael Martínez Galarza and Daniela Villegas.




August 11th, presentations of the best posters (-4 already presented) selected by lecturers and organizers: Fabián Rosales, Natalia Asari, Felipe de Oliveira and Olga Vega .

photos (1) by Gorgonio Cerón, (2,4) by Derick Cornwall, and (the rest) by Itziar Aretxaga



1m OAN observing

25th of July



First night of observations with not so clear skies over Tonantzintla. At the 1m OAN telescope Nacho Pani shows the instrumentation to the students. The students in the right photograph are, top to bottom and left to right: José Manuel López Rodríguez (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Hugo Jair Escalante (INAOE, Mexico), Ilse Plauchu (U. Gto, Mexico), Abelardo Mercado (INAOE, Mexico), Olga Vega (INAOE, Mexico), Martha Bello (INAOE, Mexico), Juan Manuel Islas (U. Gto., Mexico) and Norman Palma (UNAH, Honduras)

26th of July



In the left photograph, left to right: Nacho Pani (OAN-UNAM), Norman Palma (UNAH, Honduras), Daniela Villegas (PUC, Chile), Juan Pablo Torres Papaqui (INAOE, Mexico), Georgina Benítez de la Mora (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Jesús López (INAOE, Mexico), Víctor Vera (U.N.M. San Marcos, Peru), Rafael Gámez (IGA, Cuba). The students fill in the cryostat and reduce some of the data.

27th of July



New group up. In the left photograph the new commers: Hayden Rampadarath (U. West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago), Cecilia Mateu (CIDA, Venezuela), Mercedes Andrade (IA-UNAM, Mexico), Janet Torrealba (IA-UNAM, Mexico), Ary Rodríquez (INAOE, Mexico) and Roberto Saito (U.F. Santa Catarina, Brazil). The students discuss some aspects of the telescope with Abelardo, and look at some data in the control room with Olga and Nacho.

28th of July



The skies are finally partially clear, so a big group gathers at the telescope. In the top feft photograph, left to right Juan José Downes (CIDA, Venezuela), Nacho Pani (OAN-UNAM), Roberto Galván Madrid (CRyA-UNAM, Mexico), a visitor, Fabián Rosales (INAOE, Mexico), Mónica Blanco Cárdenas (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Yari Juárez (INAOE, Mexico), Izbeth Hernández (INAOE, Mexico), Abelardo Mercado (INAOE, Mexico), Luis Ramírez (INAOE, Mexico) and Denzil Ali (U. West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago). At the bottom photograph, Omar López Cruz pays the group a visit and they toss with coffee.

29th of July



At the top, Joannes Hernández (INAOE, Mexico), at the bottom, left to right Faviola Molina (U. Los Andes, Venezuela), Manuel Atienzo (U. Sonora, Mexico), Natalia Asari (U.F. Santa Catarina, Brazil), Hugo Zeballos (U. La Serena, Chile) and Abelardo Mercado (INAOE, Mexico). And visitors again, at the bottom of the left photograph Rosario Sánchez, Janet Torrealba and Luis Ramírez.

1st August


Left to right Janet Torrealba (IA-UNAM, Mexico), Tatiana Rodríguez Esrand (IGA, Cuba), Brisa Terezón (U. Don Bosco, El Salvador) and Jonathan León (INAOE, Mexico).

2nd August


Left to right Felipe de Oliveira Alves (U.F. Minas Gerais, Brazil), Juan Carlos Muñoz Cuartas (U. Antioquia, Colombia), Gloria Delgado (INAOE, Mexico), Juan Rafael Marínez Galarza (U.N. Colombia), Antonio Dalmau (U.N. Ingeniería, Peru), Javier Fuentes Lettura (U. La Serena, Chile) and a visitor.

all photos by Vahram Chavushyan


LMT visit

28th of July


7am in the morning, at the INAOE gate, the group gets ready to depart towards the LMT site. Left to right and top to bottom, Marco, Daniela, Hayden, Mercedes, Cecilia, Juan Rafael, César, Víctor, Javier, Janet, Roberto, David, Juan Manuel, Juan Pablo, Itziar, Antonio, Derick and Ilse.


View of different sections of the Large Millimeter Telescope




David explaining the mechanisms of the LMT to one of the visiting sub-groups, which is assembled at the base of the alidade structure. Left to right and back to front: Ilse, Mercedes, Juan Manuel, David, Marco, Roberto, Michele, Janet, Cecilia, Juan Rafael, Javier and Juan Pablo.



Inside the foundations of the LMT. Left to right: Hayden, Cecilia, Itziar, Marco, Juan Rafael, Juan Manuel, Víctor and Derick.



Michele and Derick on the alidade, with Citlaltepetl (Pico de Orizaba) in the background, and the group, with Daniela at the right, in front of the alidade structure.



View of the group at the summit of Tliltepetl (Sierra Negra), looking towards Citlaltepetl and towards the cross of Tlitepetl



César Arteaga, the guide of another of the ISYA visiting groups.

photos (1) by Gorgonio Cerón, (8-11) by Itziar Aretxaga and (the rest) by David Hughes

5th of August


Second group in the mountain. Left to right, Rodolfo, Alberto, Julia, Brisa, Tatiana, Maritza, César, Denzil, Gloria, Juan Carlos, Georgina, Norman and Yari.


Nahiely with Felipe, and with Juan Carlos and Georgina.

photos by Nahiely Flores



INAOE/Tonantzintla tour

5th of August


9am in the morning, at the INAOE gate, the group gets ready to depart towards the church of Tonan, before visiting the INAOE labs and telescopes. Left to right and top to bottom, Roberto, Faviola, Natalia, Manuel, Izbeth, Marco and José Manuel. We will acrete some others later on...


Guadalupe Rivera, our fearless cultural leader, faces the closed gates of the church. We all take the opportunity to take pictures. Detail of one of the arches inside the church.


Students at the Schmidt Camera in Tonantzintla


Visit to the on campus solar telescope

photos by Itziar Aretxaga

Lunches & Dinners




Participants at dinner in the Salón de Eventos of INAOE, and at lunch in the garden
photo (5) by Gorgonio Cerón and (the rest) by Derick Cornwall



Cultural programme: public talks and movies


(26th July) David Iturbe introduces the ISYA audience to the mural studies he and his team are carrying out in the Cholula pyramid using innovative photographic and data analysis techniques.


(27th July) Fernando Osorio makes the commentary to the movie "Un beso a esta tierra"


(28th July) Alberto Carramiñana presenting the gestation of the Large Millimeter Telescope project.


(2nd August) Public talk by Julio Glockner on the cult to the volcanoes. Julio Glockner and Francisco Soto in the photograph to the left, before the talk starts. In the photograph to the right, Julio converses with Tatiana Rodríguez after his presentation.


René Peñalosa presents three of his short films


(4th August) Julieta Fierro, in full show regalia, speaking about the very serious topic of how to best popularize science and attract funding for Astronomy, and still seriously entertaining her audience. Julieta then signs books for the general public that attended her talk.


(9th August) José Antonio Veles Pliego giving some historic perspectives on the development of astronomy studies in Puebla before the opening of the Tonantzintla Observatory.


(11th August) Christine Allen introducing her research on the historical Mexican observations of the transits of Venus, from the Mayas to the 19th century expedition to Japan, and after her talk with Esperanza and Itziar.

photos (5,6) by Itziar Aretxaga and (the rest) by Gorgonio Cerón

Excursion to Cholula, Cacaxtla and Tlaxcala (Saturday 30th of July)


View of the Pyramid of Cholula, with the Church of Los Remedios on top



Inside the museum, the group gets an introduction to the pyramid by arqueologist Citlali, our guide for the morning. Denzil and David looking at the model of the pyramid, and Brisa posing in front of a reproduction of the mural Chapulines.



Inside the pyramid, Hayden poses inside one of the tunnels. Sections of the murals.



At the base of the Cholula Pyramid, Gloria, Ed, Michele, Víctor, Citlali (our guide), and the founders of "Club Bungalow 6" (left to right) Derick, Juan Rafael, Juan Carlos, Felipe, Antonio and Javier.



Guadalupe Rivera (to the right) with the guide of Cacaxtla

photos (1,6,7) by David Hughes and (the rest) by Itziar Aretxaga

Excursion to Oaxaca (Saturday-Sunday 6-7th of August)


By popular aclaim, the group visits the Tule Tree. Left to right, Rodolfo, Faviola, Tatiana, Rafael, Antonio, Daniela, Mónica, Manuel, Juan Carlos, Nahiely, Felipe, Hugo, Javier, Maritza, Natalia, Marco, Gloria, Fabián, and below, Roberto.


Sub-groups in front of the Oaxaca Cathedral? and in Mitla.


sampling the local goodies seems to be one of the highlights of the weekend...


Rafael, far away from "home"

photos by Nahiely Flores


The closing of the school

Diplomas and dancing (12th August)


Michele and Itziar handing the diplomas to the ISYA students, and posing with them at the closing ceremony of the school.


... and party time! Just before catching the taxi back home...

photos by Gorgonio Cerón

The "official" photograph of the school


Left to right and top to bottom: Juan Rafael Martínez Galarza (U.N. Colombia), Denzil Ali (U. West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago), Luis Ramírez (INAOE, Mexico), Derick Cornwall (U. West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago), Norman Palma (UNAH, Honduras), Juan Pablo Torres Papaqui (INAOE, Mexico), Juan Carlos Muñoz Cuartas (U. Antioquia, Colombia), Joannes Henández (INAOE, Mexico), Fabián Rosales (INAOE, Mexico), Susana Lizano (CRyA-UNAM, Mexico), Esperanza Carrasco (INAOE, Mexico), Bill Wall (INAOE, Mexico), Natalia Asari (UF Santa Catarina, Brazil), Daniela Villegas (PUC, Chile), Cecilia Mateu (CIDA, Venezuela), Juan José Downes (CIDA, Venezuela), Roberto Galván (CRyA-UNAM, Mexico), César Arteaga (UMass/LMTO), Juan Manuel Islas (U. Guanajuato, Mexico), Víctor Vera (U.N.M. San Marcos, Peru), Hayden Rampadarath (U. West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago), Leonardo Sandoval (INAOE, Mexico), Rafael Guzmán (U. Florida, USA), Alberto Carramiñana (INAOE, Mexico), Rodolfo Barbá (U. La Serena, Chile), Julia Arias (U. La Plata, Argentina), Antonio Dalmau (U. N. Ingeniería, Peru), Javier Fuentes (U. La Serena, Chile), Hugo Zeballos (U. La Serena, Chile), Rosario Sánchez (INAOE, Mexico), Tatiana Rodríguez (IGA, Cuba), Ilse Plauchu (U. Guanajuato, Mexico), Mercedes Andrade (IA-UNAM CU, Mexico), Brisa Terezón (U. Don Bosco, El Salvador), Gloria Delgado (INAOE, Mexico), Izbeth Hernández (INAOE, Mexico), Michele Gerbaldi (IAP, France), Itziar Aretxaga (INAOE, Mexico), Manuel Atienzo (U. Sonora, Mexico), José Manuel López Rodríguez (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Yari Juárez (INAOE, Mexico), Elena Terlevich (INAOE, Mexico), Mónica Blanco (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Georgina Benítez (IA-UNAM Ensenada, Mexico), Felipe de Oliveira (UF Minas Gerais, Brazil), Faviola Molina (U. Los Andes, Venezuela), Rafael Gámez (IGA, Cuba) and Martha Bello (INAOE, Mexico).
photo by Gorgonio Cerón