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5 October

UofT AstroTour: The Long Path Towards Finding Habitable Exo-Worlds

Although we are still decades away from discovering life on worlds outside of our own solar system, much progress is being made today to identify the best potential candidates for hosting such life. In this talk Ryan Cloutier will discuss what we currently know about these so-called exoplanets and how we know it. He will then highlight the steps that will be taken in the not-so-distant future to further our understanding of exoplanetary atmospheres and potentially even their surface conditions using extreme telescopes.
18 September

Barbara Frum Library: York University Science Talks: Astronomy and the Extinction of Dinosaurs

Fossils show us that millions of years ago giant reptiles roamed the Earth. Yet, where are they now?
4 October

Perimeter Institute: A new view on gravity and the dark side of the cosmos: Erik Verlinde Public Lecture (WEBCAST)

Are we standing on the brink of a new scientific revolution that will radically change our views on space, time, and gravity? In most circumstances, the theories of Einstein and Newton adequately describe gravity, but on cosmological scales, big questions arise, particularly surrounding the nature of dark matter and dark energy.
14 September

City Hall Library: The science behind Earth-like planets

Have you ever wondered whether we're alone in the cosmos? For thousands of years, we have only been able to speculate. Now, astronomers searching for planets capable of supporting life are making daily progress toward answering this incredibly compelling question. Join me for a non-technical explanation of the science behind the search for Earth-like planets and a summary of the latest results. Presented by: Dr. Michael Reid - Associate Professor of Astronomy from the University of Toronto.
19 September

Runnymede Library: From Earth to Super-Earths and Beyond

It has been a little over 20 years that we know there are planets around other stars and 10 years that we know there are solid planets around other stars with the first super-Earth discovered: GJ876d. In the last few years, we have also learned that super-Earths and mini-Neptunes are the most common planet in the galaxy, improving our chances to find another habitable planet. To study these planets, we base our knowledge on what we have learned about the Earth and our planet neighbours, and test these ideas on these new and sometimes exotic planets. Dr.
21 September

Hamilton Amateur Astronomers: 2 minutes and 18 seconds in the Shadow of the Moon

Imagine the air cools, the sky darkens, the birds stop singing and the stars come out at noon. For a lucky few who have been in the path of a total solar eclipse their imagination becomes reality as they experience one of nature’s most spectacular events.
29 September

UofT Planetarium: Voyager’s Odyssey: A Small Probe’s Adventures into Interstellar Space

Showtimes: 7:00pm, 8:00pm, and 9:00pm In 1977 two small probes, Voyager 1 and 2, were launched from Earth with a mission to study the outer solar system. Both spacecraft visited Jupiter and Saturn, and Voyager 2 passed by Uranus and Neptune, returning images to Earth which allowed us to make surprising discoveries about these distant planets. Now these probes are entering interstellar space, making them the furthest man-made objects from the Earth!
15 September

UofT Planetarium: Voyager’s Odyssey: A Small Probe’s Adventures into Interstellar Space

Showtimes: 7:00pm, 8:00pm, and 9:00pm In 1977 two small probes, Voyager 1 and 2, were launched from Earth with a mission to study the outer solar system. Both spacecraft visited Jupiter and Saturn, and Voyager 2 passed by Uranus and Neptune, returning images to Earth which allowed us to make surprising discoveries about these distant planets. Now these probes are entering interstellar space, making them the furthest man-made objects from the Earth!
24 October

College/Shaw Library: Earth's Battered Moon

Just like the Earth, the Moon is about 4.5 billion years old. It has been and continues to be constantly bombarded by meteorites. Some suggest that this rate of bombardment has remained constant in the past couple of billion years. The Moon's surface without any substantial atmosphere or tectonic activity serves as a time capsule, helping us detangle Earth's history. The only way to see if the bombardment rate has changed is to have an age for every single crater, an extremely difficult task using traditional crater dating methods.
12 October

Jane/Dundas Library: Earth's Battered Moon

Just like the Earth, the Moon is about 4.5 billion years old. It has been and continues to be constantly bombarded by meteorites. Some suggest that this rate of bombardment has remained constant in the past couple of billion years. The Moon's surface without any substantial atmosphere or tectonic activity serves as a time capsule, helping us detangle Earth's history. The only way to see if the bombardment rate has changed is to have an age for every single crater, an extremely difficult task using traditional crater dating methods.