Chetumal’s Spectacular “Night of the Stars” Event Aims to Spark Curiosity

All systems are go for "The Night of the Stars" event, scheduled to commence at 6:00 PM today, Saturday, at the Technological and Industrial Bachelor's Center for Services (Cbtis) 214 "Ignacio Allende." This event is a significant science outreach program at a national and Latin American level. Quintana Roo has been participating since 2011, initially at the Autonomous University of the State of Quintana Roo (Uqroo), and by 2024, there will be nine venues across the State.

Joel Omar Yam Gamboa, a Uqroo professor and organizing committee member, shared that the program includes artistic and cultural activities, a lecture, and over twenty workshops on exact sciences. The event is expected to attract around one thousand people, including organizers, workshop speakers, and general attendees. The goal is to offer knowledge in a fun, free way to as many people as possible. It also aims to introduce children to astronomical, physical, chemical, and mathematical sciences in an engaging way.

"The event has grown, and we hope it continues to grow each year, with more institutions participating and coverage extending to all municipalities of the State," said Yam Gamboa. He added that workshops would include assembling telescopes, understanding how microscopes work, robotics, and other equipment assemblies that will pique the interest of younger attendees.

"The Night of the Stars" is promoted nationally by UNAM, the IPN, the Mexican Space Agency, the Mexican Academy of Sciences, the National Institute of Astrophysics, Optics and Electronics, the Institute of Astronomy of the UNAM, the Mexican Association of Telescope and Binocular Distributors, the Mexican Space Agency, the Secretary of Communications and Transportation, Celestron, Kosmos, and the French Alliance. In Chetumal, the event is organized by CBTIS 214, Cobaqroo, the Technological Institute of Chetumal, Sonnen LABS, the Youth Scientific Society, and the Quintana Roo Youth Institute.