Jacinda Byam
I’ve never once in my life harbored as much fascination as having looked at a star’s spectra for the first time in my life. Analyzing the ups and downs of the elements that make up a star’s light was all I would do for hours on end.
Jacinda Byam Headshot
Out of billions of galaxies, a predicted septillion stars, and an estimated 22 sextillion planets in the observable universe, there’s our tiny planet, Earth. The extreme rarity of life has made me fascinated by astronomy.
I will be the first in my family to obtain not only a bachelor’s degree but also a Ph.D.
At the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, I created a dashboard to monitor sky brightness to learn how light pollution has affected astronomical observations. This led to the unbelievable moment of observing at a high-resolution telescope, the 1.5m telescope at Cerro Pachon.
My financial situation isn’t sustainable, and I had to transfer to College of Charleston for cheaper in-state tuition. This scholarship alleviated much of my family’s stress, as my mom desperately wants to witness her daughter graduate from college.
