Curriculum Vitae

(Updated on June, 2023)

Education

• Ph.D in Astrophysics at Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias/Universidad de La Laguna (Spain), Nov 2016
• M.S. in Astrophysics at Universidad de La Laguna (Spain), Jul 2014
• B.S. in Physics at Universidad de Extremadura (Spain), Jul 2012

Professional Experience

• Jun 2023 - present: Assistant Astronomer at Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab (Hawai’i)
  • 50% functional duties / 50% Science. Service: GMOS, GRACES, NIRI, and MAROON-X scientific support staff, Queue Coordinator, DDT review committee member, Journal Club organizer.
• Sep 2021 - Jun 2023: Science Fellow at Gemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab (Hawai’i)
  • 50% functional duties / 50% Science. Duties: GMOS, GRACES, NIRI, IGRINS-2 scientific support staff. Journal Club organizer.
• Oct 2017 - Sep 2021: Science Fellow at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab (Chile)
  • 50% functional duties / 50% Science. Duties: DECam support scientist, Colloquium convenor.
• Apr 2017 - Oct 2017: Postdoc Fellow at the INAF – Osservatorio Astronomico di Bologna (Italy)
  • Project: Resolved stellar population to study the potential of multi-conjugate adaptive optics
  • Advisor: Dr. G. Fiorentino

Awards and grants

• AURA Science Award 2022, in recognition of an outstanding research on pulsating variable stars in diverse satellite galaxies of the Milky Way

• Sept 2013 - Sept 2016: Ph.D. studentship (“residente”) at Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
  • Thesis: Tracing the early chemical evolution of Local Group dwarf galaxies using RR Lyrae stars
  • Supervisor: Dr. M. Monelli. Co-supervisors: Dra. C. Gallart and Dr. E. J. Bernard
• Jul 2012 - Aug 2013: Summer student grant at Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
  • Project: Chemical Composition of Open Clusters: Variations of the CN and CH band strengths
  • Supervisor: Dr. R. Carrera
• Sept 2011 - Jul 2012: Student grant in the Department of Physics at Universidad de Extremadura (Spain)
  • Project: Influence of a interstitial fluid over the transport coefficients of a dilute granular gas
  • Supervisor: Prof. V. Garzó

Skills

• Spoken languages:
  • Spanish (mother tongue)
  • English (fluent)
  • Italian (good)
• Operating systems:
  • Unix, Linux, MacOS, Window
• Programming Languages:
  • IDL, Python, Octave/Matlab, SuperMongo, Fortran, Shell, ADQL, SQL
• Astronomical software:
  • IRAF, Aladin, DS9, TOPCAT, STILTS, DAOPHOT, ALLSTAR, ALLFRME, DAOMATCH, DAOMASTER, SExtractor, DRAGONS, OPERA
• Data Reduction:
  • Pre-reduction of imaging and long-slit spectra with IRAF/PyRAF and DRAGONS
  • PSF photomtery with DAOPHOT/ALLSTAR/ALLFRAME, including AO imaging (GeMS/GSAOI)
  • Spectroscopic long-slit reduction with IRAF and echelle with OPERA

Main Science Interests

• stars: variables: pulating stars: RR Lyrae, Cepheids, Miras, delta Scuti
• galaxies: evolution, stellar content
• star clusters
• Local Group

Observational Expertise

• PI of 14 proposals with more than 400 hours in different telescopes and CoI of 44.
• Experience in both photometric and spectroscopic observing runs in different observatories: ORM (La Palma, Spain), Teide (Spain), CTIO (Chile), Cerro Pachón (Chile), and Maunakea Observatories (Hawai’i).
• Personally executed 130 classic observing nights with different imagers and spectrographs: WFC@INT(camera), CAMELOT@IAC80 (camera), FIES@NOT (echelle spectrograph), DECam@CTIO-4m (camera), Goodman@SOAR (imaging spectrograph), SPARTAN@SOAR (Near-IR camera), SOI@SOAR (camera), HDS@Subaru (echelle spectrograph).
• More than 200 observing nights at CTIO (2017-2021) as part of the DECam Science Support Team, giving DECam support in assisting observers and also helping during Engineering nights.
• Since September 2021, observer in 21 queue nights at Gemini North with the following instruments: GMOS-N (optical imager, long-slit, MOS, IFU), NIRI (NIR imager), NIFS (NIR IFU), and GNIRS.

Leadership

• Science coordinator for the DELVE-WIDE group within the DELVE survey since 2021.
• Science coordinator for the subgroup of Milky Way Satellites within the DES survey in the Milky Way Working group, 2021-2023.
• Organiser of the Gemini North Journal Club since 2022.
• Organiser of Science Coffee/Tea, AURA South (CTIO + Gemini), La Serena (Chile), 2019-2021.
• Colloquium convenor at CTIO, 2018-2021.

Professional Service

• Internal Scientific Referee in the Milky Way Working Group of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Collaboration.
• Scientific Referee in the AAS, A&A, MNRAS journals.
• SOC member of the DELVE Collaboration meeting 2022. Tucson, Arizona (Sep 15-16, 2022).
• SOC member of the Joint Observatories Kavli Science Forum in Chile. Santiago, Chile (April, 25-29, 2022).
• Session Chair of the session Galaxy & Cluster Population in the 241st AAS Annual Meeting. Seattle, Washington (Jan 8-12, 2023).
• Chambliss judge for the 241st AAS Annual Meeting. Seattle, Washington (Jan 8-12, 2023).
• Session Chair of the conference DECam at 10 years - Looking Back, Looking Forward. Tucson, Arizona (Sep 12-14, 2022).
• Session Chair of the conference Gemini Observatory Science Meeting 2022. Seoul, South Korea (Jul 26-29, 2022).
• Session Chair of the DECam Community Science Workshop 2018: Science Highlights, Coming Opportunities, LSST Synergies. Tucson, Arizona (May 21-22, 2018).
• LOC of the DECam Community Science Workshop 2018: Science Highlights, Coming Opportunities, LSST Synergies. Tucson, Arizona (21-22 May 2018).
• Memeber of the Science Fellow hiring committee panel 2021.
• Queue coordinator at Gemini Observatory (since December 2022).
• GMOS, GRACES, NIRI, IGRINS-2 support staff at the Gemini Observatory (devoting 50\% of my time from October 2021 to the present).
• DECam support member (devoting 50% of my time from October 2017 to September 2021)
• Technical reviewer of DECam observing proposals.

Mentoring

• Undergraduate student main advisor. Jennifer Nakano, University of Hawai’i Manoa, USA (Akamai student at Gemini Observatory). Project: Machine Learning to create a training sample to classify variable stars in the Magellanic Clouds. June-Aug 2023 and Oct 2023-Apr 2024.

• Ph.D. student co-advisor. Joseph Mullen, Iowa State University, USA. Project: Metallicity and Period-Luminosity relations of Galactic RR Lyrae stars from Optical and Infrared Light Curves. 2019-2023. Main advisor: Dr. Massimo Marengo.

• Undergraduate student co-advisor. Xavier Tablit, University of Hawai’i, Hilo, USA (Akamai student at Gemini Observatory). Project: A Brute Force Strategy for Cataloging Members of Open Clusters. June-July 2021. Main advisor: Dr. André-Nicolas Chené.

• Master student co-advisor. Camille Bentaj, Sorbonne Université, Paris, France (research inter student at Gemini South). Master thesis: Analysis of stellar variability in multi-conjugate adaptive optics images. March-July 2020. Main advisor: Dr. John Blakeslee. Other co-advisor(s): Dr. Ricardo Salinas.

• Undergraduate student co-advisor. Morgan Elise McCarthy, University of Rochester, New York, USA (research inter student at CTIO). Project: Searching for Variable Stars in the Reticulum III Ultra-Faint Dwarf Galaxy. June-Aug 2018. Main advisor: Dr. Kathy Vivas.

• Master student co-advisor. Alberto Jesús Prieto Antúnez, ULL-IAC, Tenerife, Spain. Master thesis: Criterios de búsqueda de estrellas variables en galaxias. Feb-July 2017. Main advisor: Dr. Carme Gallart. Other co-advisor(s): Dr. Matteo Monelli.