A 16-year-old Andover girl was one of just 20 students from across the U.S. to receive a scholarship from the Davidson Fellows Scholarship Program.
Valencia Zhang, who was also one of just two Massachusetts students to receive the award, discovered the first-ever triaxial pulsator, a star that pulsates about three different, perpendicular axes for her project.
“Being named a Davidson Fellow is a dream come true,” said Valencia Zhang. “It not only recognizes my passion for astronomy, but it also offers me the opportunity to interact with a community of individuals equally driven to make a difference in the world.”
While most stars’ pulsations can only be observed through their frequency, tidally tilted pulsators, a novel class of stars in binary systems, allow for the observation of pulsations from all angles. The groundbreaking discovery challenges existing definitions in the field of stellar pulsations and provides new insights into the types of axes stars can pulsate about.
“This year’s class of Davidson Fellows Scholarship recipients exemplifies the power of innovation and perseverance,” said Bob Davidson, founder of the Davidson Institute. “Our Fellows continue to push the boundaries of their educational and research pursuits, striving to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems by leveraging creative, outside-the-box thinking and cutting-edge technology to expand their networks, access new sources of information, and deliver an impressive array of diverse projects.”
The 2024 Davidson Fellows will be honored during a reception at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. and with a virtual project presentation ceremony in September 2024.
The Davidson Fellows Scholarship program offers $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 college scholarships to students 18 or younger, who have completed significant projects that have the potential to benefit society in the fields of science, technology, engineering, mathematics, literature and music. The Davidson Fellows Scholarship has provided more than $9.9 million in scholarship funds to 448 students since its inception in 2001, and has been named one of the most prestigious undergraduate scholarships by U.S. News & World Report. It is a program of the Davidson Institute, a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Reno, Nev. that supports profoundly gifted youth.