UofT AstroTour: Cosmic Déjà Vu: Echoes from a Supernova
Speaker: Lauren Hetherington
In 1572, astronomers around the world saw a brilliant supernova which outshone every other star in the sky. It faded from view over the following two years and yet, today, we can still detect light from this ancient stellar explosion. How can this be? The answer lies in light echoes: light reflected by dust far from the initial explosion. Join us for the May AstroTour talk to discover what can we learn from these radiant echoes in space and how it is that they often look like they’re moving faster than the speed of light.
About the Speaker
Lauren is a fourth year PhD candidate studying tidal streams – dwarf galaxies or globular clusters which have been torn apart by gravity. They can help us learn about where mass is in our galaxy, and detect clumps of dark matter. She was born in New Brunswick, and studied physics and math in Fredericton. In her spare time, she enjoys baking, role-playing games, and making loud noises in enclosed spaces to savour the echoes.
The U of T Astronomy Public Tour, or AstroTour, is a monthly event operated by the graduate students of the U of T Astronomy Department. The Tour features a public lecture by a member of the Department on topics ranging from their research to great moments in astronomical history. Following the lecture, tour-goers can peer at the night sky through the Department’s balcony and dome telescopes, or watch a planetarium show run live by astronomer. Admission to the tour is free. Seating for the lecture is on a first-come, first-served basis (doors open ten minutes before the start of the lecture), and the telescope observing is walk-in.
Who can attend: Everyone
Fee: Free
Reservations: Only required for Planetarium Shows (available April 30th at noon)
Organized by: Graduate Astronomy Students Association. The AstroTours are generously financed by the Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics and the Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics.
Location: University of Toronto, Earth Sciences Centre, Room 1050, 33 Willcocks Street, Toronto