The central event of the Assumpció Català year, Spain’s first female astronomer professor, reflects on women and science
The meeting remembered the figure of Català i Poch through a travelling exhibition organized by the ICD to coincide with the 100th anniversary of her birth. The exhibition will be available on loan, free of charge to associations, local authorities and other institutions, as it joins the ICD’s catalogue of travelling exhibitions with a gender perspective, with 50 titles that highlight the contributions of women to history.
The president of the ICD, Sònia Guerra López, made the institutional welcome together with the president of Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Carlos Ruiz Novella, and the vice-rector for Culture, Memory and Heritage of the University of Barcelona, Agustí Alcoberro. The closing address was given by the Catalan Minister for Equality and Feminism, Eva Menor Cantador. Montserrat Puig, vice-rector for Equality, Inclusion and Gender, also attended on behalf of the UB.
Catalan Minister Menor stated that the centenary of Maria Assumpció Català is not just a commemoration: it is an act of reparation and of looking to the future, and “an opportunity to look back with justice and look forward with responsibility”. “We must highlight her achievements”, she said, “but we must also ensure that today’s girls can write their own history, without the limitations that she had to break through”.
For his part, Vice-Rector Alcoberro said: “As institutions, we must preserve our history, but also our memory, that is, the memory of those who have helped us to become who we are. Assumpció Català was a great example of hard work, dedication and perseverance put at the service of enormous talent”. He added: “Now that we are in the midst of preparations for the 575th anniversary of the UB, we will highlight the enormous human capital of the UB, in which Català plays a prominent role”.
Guerra went on to say that the Catalan Women’s Institute is working “to recover and raise awareness of figures such as Assumpció Català, a pioneering woman who has been silenced by history for too long”. “We are vindicating her career not only as an act of justice, but also as an essential educational tool. Girls and young women need female role models to look up to, and Assumpció is a beacon and inspiration for new scientific vocations”, she said.
Finally, Novella explained that the Montsec Astronomical Park is “an extraordinary centre for observing the sky, possibly the best observatory in the world”, and that “its most important telescope is named after Català i Poch, the first female astronomy professor in Spain, who overcame a major challenge for science and for women”.
Participation of different women scientists
During the event, which was led by the journalist Mariví Chacón, three women scientists from different generations debated the current situation of women in science: Nadejda Blagorodnova, professor at the UB’s Department of Quantum Physics and Astrophysics and member of the UB’s Institute of Cosmos Sciences (ICC); Margarita Hernanz Carbó, professor at the Institute of Space Sciences of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and Raquel Salvia Cos, member of the educational team of the Astronomical Park and student of a master’s degree in astrophysics.
Her nephew, Ramon Català i Pou; Francesca Figueras, lecturer at the UB’s Department of Quantum Physics and Astrophysics and member of the ICC, and Trinidad Cadefau Surroca, who was a student of hers, spoke about Català i Poch’s career.
The event ended with a guided tour of the telescope named after Maria Assumpció Català i Poch, the largest in the park, which was named after the astronomer in 2016. The tour was given by the director of the Astronomical Park, Salvador Ribas Rubio.
Maria Assumpció Català i Poch (Barcelona, 14 July 1925 - 3 July 2009) was the first woman to obtain a PhD in Mathematics from the UB in 1970 and worked as a lecturer in Mathematics and Astronomy at the UB. She made systematic observations of sunspots for more than 30 years and represented Spain at the International Astronomical Union.
Assumpció Català Year
As part of the milestones of the commemoration, the Park will also dedicate the Astronomy Festival, now in its 11th year, to the astronomer. In addition, the Catalan Women’s Institute is preparing a publication on her career. The centenary of Assumpció Català is part of the Government’s commemorations for 2025, which annually agrees on the events and personalities that will be recognized by the Government of Catalonia. It aims to highlight, recover and disseminate the memory of these events and personalities that have left their mark on the collective heritage of the Catalan people.
The Montsec Astronomical Park telescope
The largest telescope in the Montsec Astronomical Park, where this central event took place, has been named after Assumpció Català since 2016, in homage to the astronomer who was a leading figure in research but also in science education. The Assumpció Català Poch telescope is a catadioptric telescope with a Dall-Kirkham configuration of 50 centimetres in diameter and is located in the Observatory-Classroom, an area that combines the functions of an observatory with a space for 84 seated people to enjoy astronomical observation. This telescope is fully automated and contains the necessary equipment to obtain high quality astronomical images.
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Agustí Alcoberro, UB vice-rector.
UB professor and ICCUB member Francesca Figueras.
