Since the discovery of the first exoplanets in the early 1990s, we have detected more than 4,000 worlds beyond our solar system. Many of these are similar in size to our Earth, leading to an obvious question: could any be habitable? For now, we typically only know the size and orbit of these planets, but nothing about their surface conditions. Although we cannot know for sure if these worlds could support life, we can use models to speculate on what we might find there.

Speaker: Randy Attwood, FRASC, Mississauga Centre

HAA welcomes Trevor Jones as our guest speaker for our first meeting at McMaster Innovation Park, our new home.

For the first time since 2016, the planet Mercury will pass between the Earth and the Sun, making it visible as a small dot against the Sun’s disc. While it will be an amazing sight to behold, looking directly at the sun is dangerous. So the experts from the Mississauga Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada will be setting up their properly-filtered telescopes at Riverwood to offer you safe, clear views of the transit.

Join the Allan I. Carswell Observatory Team at York University in viewing Mercury transit the Sun! Come use solar telescopes to watch as Mercury passes in front of the Sun for the first time since 2016! Admission is free, and Mercury won't transit the Sun again until 2032, so make sure you don't miss it!

Explore the night sky through an engaging and informative presentation delivered by an astronomer. Delve into the history and mythology of the heavens, and learn how to identify the constellations. This is a family-friendly event. Please dress for the weather.

Exploring the Earth's Interior by Full Seismic WavesQinya Liu, J. Tuzo Wilson Professor of Geophysics, University of Toronto

Explore the night sky through an engaging and informative presentation delivered by an astronomer. Delve into the history and mythology of the heavens, and learn how to identify the constellations. This is a family-friendly event. Please dress for the weather.

NASA’s latest Mars mission touched down roughly a year ago. Tasked with detecting even the slightest tremor in the planet’s crust, tracking its weather 24.5 hours a day, and sensing its internal temperature, InSight is allowing us to explore Mars like never before. Let’s take a look at what InSight has shown us so far, and what it could reveal to us about our second favourite terrestrial planet.

Quench your thirst for astronomy! On Friday, November 22, at The Great Hall! It'll be another fun evening of pints, astronomy news, mind-expanding talks, games, prizes, and Dunlap merchandise for sale! Plus, following all the talks, there will be plenty of time for you to have all your cosmic questions answered by astronomers from the Dunlap Institute and the University of Toronto. We'll announce talk topics and more details close to the date. We will have ASL services at this event for individuals with hearing impairments.