AURORA PRIZE

 

 

Alenush Terian was called the “mother of Iranian astronomy,” and was one of the founders of the solar observatory at the Institute of Geophysics at the University of Tehran. In 1964 she had become the first ever female professor of physics in Iran. 

 

She grew up in the country’s old Armenian community and attended the University of Tehran, where she would later become a lecturer. She continued her studies at the Sorbonne in Paris, after which she returned to Iran to work as an assistant professor in thermodynamics. 

 

Never married, Terian’s focus during her adult life were her studies and the students she taught. She was known as a caring instructor whose love for her students was duly requited. 

 

 

Terian gifted her house to the New Julfa Armenian community to be used by university students who didn’t have a place to live. She died in a nursing home.