Our Favorite Images of 2023
A year of exploration, perseverance and achievement at the University of Arizona — captured on camera
![Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for NASA’s Wildcat-led OSIRIS-REx mission, celebrates in the Utah desert after the historic Sept. 24 return of a sample of the asteroid Bennu. Before the mission, the United States had never returned an asteroid sample to Earth. Lauretta serves as a Regents Professor of planetary science and cosmochemistry at the University of Arizona.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_natural/public/2023-11/DanteLauretta-osiris23.jpg?itok=4yPa81hs)
Dante Lauretta, principal investigator for NASA’s Wildcat-led OSIRIS-REx mission, celebrates in the Utah desert after the historic Sept. 24 return of a sample of the asteroid Bennu. Before the mission, the United States had never returned an asteroid sample to Earth. Lauretta serves as a Regents Professor of planetary science and cosmochemistry at the University of Arizona.
![Edith Silas, a Hopi tribal member and the 2022-23 Lori Piestewa Post 80 Princess, performs a ceremonial dance during the unveiling ceremony for a new sign at Old Main in April. The sign describes Old Main as a gathering place in the Hopi language, reading: “Kiisonvi: The focal point of a community where thoughts and prayers become one to benefit all life.”](/sites/default/files/styles/az_large/public/2023-11/OldMainHopiSignCeremony-EdithSilas.jpg?itok=SBme68yi)
Edith Silas, a Hopi tribal member and the 2022-23 Lori Piestewa Post 80 Princess, performs a ceremonial dance during the unveiling ceremony for a new sign at Old Main in April. The sign describes Old Main as a gathering place in the Hopi language, reading: “Kiisonvi: The focal point of a community where thoughts and prayers become one to benefit all life.”
![Lauretta wipes away tears of joy while speaking about the sample return. OSIRIS-REx was the dream of Lauretta’s mentor, the late Michael Drake, who previously directed the university’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_natural/public/2023-11/DanteLauretta-samplereturn.jpg?itok=NR0yTwby)
Lauretta wipes away tears of joy while speaking about the sample return. OSIRIS-REx was the dream of Lauretta’s mentor, the late Michael Drake, who previously directed the university’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.
![Students holding glowsticks gather outside Old Main during Destination Arizona, a new orientation program for first-year Wildcats.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_natural/public/2023-11/DestinationArizona2023.jpg?itok=KEVtcVT1)
Students holding glowsticks gather outside Old Main during Destination Arizona, a new orientation program for first-year Wildcats.
![A view of the partial solar eclipse on Oct. 14, with the Wildcat Family statue — which depicts four bobcats, including two cubs — in the foreground.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_large/public/2023-11/SolarEclipse-WildcatFamilyStatue.png?itok=sl7YvJl0)
A view of the partial solar eclipse on Oct. 14, with the Wildcat Family statue — which depicts four bobcats, including two cubs — in the foreground.
![Homecoming 2023 brought together students, alumni and community members for a few days spent toasting the Wildcat spirit.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_natural/public/2023-11/Homecoming2023.jpg?itok=EAIS0FCW)
Homecoming 2023 brought together students, alumni and community members for a few days spent toasting the Wildcat spirit.
![The university’s research enterprise makes it among the top institutions in the world for scholarship in multiple areas.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_large/public/2023-11/Microscope-RII.jpg?itok=MuKeIAr7)
The university’s research enterprise makes it among the top institutions in the world for scholarship in multiple areas.
![The Homecoming bonfire and royalty crowning on Nov. 3 preceded the Arizona football team’s 27-10 victory over UCLA — part of the program’s most successful season since 2014.](/sites/default/files/styles/az_natural/public/2023-11/HomecomingBonfire2023.jpg?itok=iqcqyUIG)
The Homecoming bonfire and royalty crowning on Nov. 3 preceded the Arizona football team’s 27-10 victory over UCLA — part of the program’s most successful season since 2014.