Mexican IYA2009 SPoC Silvia Torres-Peimbert wins the L’Oréal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science

22 November 2010

The L'Oréal-UNESCO prizes "For Women in Science" are awarded each year, successively in different fields of science, to five women scientists of the five continents: Africa and Arab States, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and North America. 


The Latin American laureate of the 13th Annual L’Oréal-UNESCO 2011 "For Women in Science Awards" is Professor Emeritus Silvia Torres-Peimbert from the Institute of Astronomy, Mexico City University (UNAM), Mexico. She was awarded the prize for her work on the chemical composition of nebulae, which is fundamental to our understanding of the origin of the universe. 

A native of Mexico, Silvia Torres-Peimbert obtained her PhD at the University of California Berkeley, USA. She then became Professor in the Faculty of Sciences and the Institute of Astronomy at UNAM. Today she is Emeritus Professor and since 2009 has been Coordinator of Physical, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences at the university. She is a member of the American Astronomical Society, the Academy of Sciences of the Developing World, and is a past Vice-President of the International Astronomical Union. She is the IYA2009 Single Point of Contact for Mexico.

Organisational Associates:
ESO AAS INSU CAS STRW NOVA STFC SCNAT SPA NRC MEC CNES DLR ESA JAXA NAOJ APL PS ESF ISRO ICRAN NLSI NOT U Cluster NASAEAS ASI NRAO CEA  KASI EAE SPA AUI CROSCI


The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is endorsed by the United Nations and the International Council of Science.