Day: April 15, 2024
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No Comet left inside
Comets on campus found themselves in the direct path of a total solar eclipse on April 8 — This sighting brought thousands of spectators and experts to DFW for a phenomenon that will not return to the city until 2345. During the morning of the celestial phenomenon, The Eclipse Planning Committee, led by UTD department…
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A Comet’s map of the stars
UTD Professor of Physics and Astrophysics Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki presented the largest 3D map of the universe and his research team’s findings from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument to the American Physical Society in Sacramento, California on April 4. Located at the Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is capable…
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Einstein, an eclipse and Brazil walk into a bar
At the 2024 Solar Eclipse Panel Discussion that took place April 8, Professor of Physics and Astrophysics Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki retold the story of how a total solar eclipse in Brazil changed the world and brought Albert Einstein to fame, and how UTD added to the story 100 years later. In 1919, the world accepted Albert…
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Comet Comments: what did you think about the eclipse?
Maybe 3 of the 4 minutes of the totality were obscured by clouds unfortunately, but it heightened the tension. Everyone lost their minds when the clouds actually moved out of the way. Josh Manigsaca, Animation and Games ATEC I was at the science building courtyard and we all laid on the grass, my friends and…
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Comets: Upcoming vote on ‘green’ service fee
All students will be able to vote on a fee referendum to support sustainable development and green projects on campus from April 24 to 26. The referendum proposes the addition of a $5 fee during fall and spring semesters and a $2.50 fee during summer semesters, which will last a maximum of five years and…
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Empower: ticket of the hour
With the end of voting on April 5, Devin Schwartz and Debopreeta Bhattacharya were elected as Student Government president and vice president respectively. Schwartz, a computer science and philosophy junior, and Bhattacharya, a sociology junior, ran under the Empower Ticket with a campaign focused on three core principles: advocacy, engagement and solidarity. Schwartz and Bhattacharya…
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Hassle of a hackathon
UTD has hosted HackUTD every year since 2015; it is the largest hackathon in the state of Texas with around 1,000 attendees in 2023 alone. Planning for this massive endeavor falls entirely on students — how do these Comets manage such a large responsibility? HackUTD is a 24-hour event where students from all majors come…
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In Memoriam: First undergraduate executive dean Regina Kyle
Regina Mary Jane Kyle, the first undergraduate executive dean and first female dean in UTD history, passed away April 2 at the age of 88 in her home in Falmouth, Massachusetts. In 1973, Kyle became the Executive Dean for Undergraduate Studies, laying the foundation of UTD’s modern undergraduate program during her 10-year tenure. UTD was…
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While we watched the eclipse, they studied the sky
During the April 8 total solar eclipse, associate physics professor Fabiano Rodrigues led a team of student researchers in probing the ionosphere, collecting data on how parts of the sky change during an eclipse and affect satellite transmissions. Rodrigues has been a long time expert in the ionosphere, the electrified upper region of the atmosphere,…