Gabriela González

Born on 24 February 1965 in Córdoba, Argentina, Gabriela González is a leading member of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), the scientific collaboration that made the first direct detection of gravitational waves. González received her master’s degree in 1988 from the University of Córdoba and her PhD in 1995 from Syracuse University in New York. Although she began her graduate studies as a theoretical physicist, she found experimental work to be her true calling. González joined the LIGO scientific collaboration in 1997 and the faculty of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge in 2001. During her two decades at LIGO, González has performed a number of functions, including calibrating the interferometers, analyzing data, and coordinating the efforts of more than 1000 researchers at 90 different institutions around the world. As LIGO spokesperson, she was one of several scientists chosen to announce the gravitational-wave discovery in February 2016. For her efforts, she received the National Academy of Sciences’ 2017 Award for Scientific Discovery. González plans to return to full-time research when her term as LIGO spokesperson ends. (Photo credit: Eddy Perez, LSU)

Date in History: 24 February 1965