Taft Armandroff serves as the director of The University of Texas at Austin’s McDonald Observatory and a professor in the Department of Astronomy. He serves on the Boards of Directors for the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization (GMTO) and the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET). He is currently chair of both the GMTO Board and the HET Board.
Armandroff’s scientific interests include stellar populations in our galaxy and nearby galaxies, dwarf spheroidal galaxies, and globular clusters. He is passionate about advancing scientific discoveries via new telescopes, new instrumentation, and other observatory enhancements.
Prior to arriving at The University of Texas at Austin in June 2014, he served for eight years as director of the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii. Prior to his work at Keck, Taft spent nineteen years at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) in Tucson, Arizona, starting as a postdoctoral research fellow and culminating as a tenured astronomer and NOAO associate director.
B-G Andersson oversees the allocation of observing time for McDonald Observatory telescopes and supports researchers and programs. As an astronomer, he has conducted extensive research on the interstellar medium (the “stuff between the stars”) and on how and why dust grains are aligned in space.
Prior to joining McDonald Observatory, Andersson served for many years as associate director for science operations at NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). Before that, he worked on Johns Hopkins University’s Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) mission and at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Teznie Pugh earned her Ph.D. in astronomy from Western University in Ontario, Canada, focusing on the study of high-resolution spectra of red supergiant stars. Her career includes roles at Lowell Observatory, where she served as Discovery Channel Telescope specialist, operations manager, and interim deputy director of technology. In 2020, Pugh joined the McDonald Observatory team as superintendent.
A passionate advocate for astronomical site protections, she currently co-chairs the American Astronomical Society’s (AAS) Committee for the Protection of Astronomy and the Space Environment (COMPASSE) and was instrumental in the founding of the Greater Big Bend International Dark Sky Reserve in 2022.
Phillip MacQueen facilitates observational research for The University of Texas at Austin’s Department of Astronomy, leading a multidisciplinary technology team that designs and builds instruments and telescope systems for McDonald Observatory and the Hobby-Eberly Telescope. He also is an active member of several exoplanet research groups involved with McDonald Observatory and NASA planet search and characterization efforts.
Gary Hill is the McDonald Observatory Chief Astronomer and Research Professor in UT Austin’s Astronomy Department. His role is to lead the development of cutting-edge instrumentation for faint objects and cosmology. He led the Wide Field Upgrade of the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) as well as the first and second generation HET low resolution spectrographs and VIRUS, the world’s largest integral field spectrograph utilized for the HETDEX project. Gary’s interests include observational cosmology, the evolution of galaxies and quasars, and forefront technology for ground based telescopes.
Hanshin Lee joined McDonald Observatory in 2008 after earning his Ph.D. in astrophysics from the University of Oxford. Lee’s research revolves around the understanding of the fundamental behavior of light propagation through optical and photonic devices, and its practical application in astronomical instrumentation.
Lee is currently serving as a senior research scientist and has been the lead scientist for several of the Observatory’s facilities, including the Simmons Dark Energy Optical System for the Hobby-Eberly Telescope, the new VIRUS2 spectrograph for the Harlan J. Smith Telescope, and the GMTNIRS instrument for the Giant Magellan Telescope. He is also leading a group of scientists, engineers, and students to develop “nano-scale” photonic optical surface structures to help instruments efficiently collect photons from super faint “cosmic-scale” objects and structures across space and time.
Tracy Tarver oversees a team that provides consulting, guidance, and support for HR staffing, management, and operations; offers a wide range of business and financial services; and promotes organizational effectiveness, all while ensuring compliance with UT policies, procedures, and systems.
Katie Kizziar joined McDonald Observatory in 2018 as the assistant director for education and outreach. She is responsible for a variety of initiatives that promote the observatory and encourage astronomy exploration. Her strong foundation in nonprofit management, STEM education, and community engagement was built through years of experience in museums, university outreach, program design, and workforce development.
Keary Kinch serves within the McDonald Observatory and Department of Astronomy as a frontline gift officer. Kinch has been a fundraiser for 40 years, starting her career as a student at The University of Texas at Austin in 1985. She worked in DC politics for 25 years before returning home to Austin and to UT in 2011.
Emily Howard coordinates interviews, image permissions, and site visits for members of the media. If this is you, please don’t hesitate to reach out by emailing news@mcdonaldobservatory.org. She also helps promote the Observatory’s research, public programs, and news by writing and distributing news releases to local and broader communities.
Anna Boxall facilitates two membership programs at McDonald Observatory (the Board of Visitors and the Friends of McDonald Observatory), helps the Observatory maintain positive donor relations, and is part of a broader team that arranges member-focused events in support of the Observatory’s fundraising priorities.
Stephen Hummel is the Dark Skies Initiative coordinator for McDonald Observatory. He works with surrounding communities, external partners, and industries on outdoor lighting practices to preserve dark skies. He uses scientific methods to measure and track changes in artificial sky brightness at McDonald Observatory and surrounding parks and protected places.