The Moon is an important part of our everyday lives. It regulates the tides and stabilizes the tilt of Earth's rotation axis, playing an important role in making our planet the place it is today. The lunar phases were also used to construct the first calendars, and the Moon was the first celestial body studied in detail by astronomers, not to mention the only one that has been visited by humans so far. Compared to other satellites in the Solar system however, the Moon is unusual, so how did it come to be? Dr.

For everyone who was dissapointed by our cancelled symposium, Dr. John B. Charles (one of the original symposium speakers) has agreed to come to Toronto to give a special Star Talk!

Explore the universe with members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Telescopes will be set up to provide amazing views of the Moon, the planets and more! Meet at the Chappell House Lawn.

In the late 1990s, A Canadian research team played an important role in proving something we all should know about neutrinos: they are almost — but not quite — massless. When scientists first realized that nuclear reactions must be the power source for the Sun and stars, it seemed there would be no way to observe those reactions directly. Wolfgang Pauli invented the neutrino in 1930 to help explain radioactivity, and neutrinos were first measured in the 1950s.

Join us as particle physicist and Nobel Laureate Arthur McDonald takes us on a journey through the underground Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNOLAB) to measure the smallest and most elusive particles in the universe. Followed by a panel discussion also featuring York physicists Sampa Bhadra and Scott Menary, moderated by Matt McGrath, BBC journalist and York Science Communicator in Residence. About the speaker and panelists

The combined power of infrared observatories both in space and from the ground has allowed us to observe extraordinarily distant galaxies. Some of the most distant are observed just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang, when the universe was merely 2% of its current age. Dr. Muzzin will talk about what what observatories like the Hubble Space Telescope have shown us about these exotic young galaxies. He will also introduce the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA's $9 billion dollar IR-optimized successor to Hubble.

Join the Hamilton Amateur Astronomers this April 7 for their Spring telescope clinic.

This four-night course (April 5, 12, 19 & 26) is open to budding astronomers ages 12 and up! The course is taught by members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada – Mississauga Centre. If the sky is clear, there will be observing for 30 minutes at the end of each session. Please register before March 16, 2018. Note: A minimum of 15 participants are required to run the course.

For millennia, people (including our First Nations) have used the sky as a clock, calendar, and compass. Astronomy thus became deeply rooted in their spirituality, mythology, and culture.

Telescopes will be available to view the Moon, the planet Jupiter with its moons, the planet Venus, and various deep-sky wonders. A local astronomer with a sky pointer will be on hand to trace out constellations. Dress warmly! Please stay close to the walkway to protect the wildflower plantings. Anyone who can help out with a telescope or otherwise is warmly encouraged to do so. Especially if you are bringing equipment, a good place to park is on Charles Lane just west of where it meets Sumner lane.