Quench your thirst for astronomy! Join on us on Friday November 4th, at the Great Hall were we’ll be celebrating two years of “Tap T.O.”! We promise another fun evening of pints, astronomy news, mind-expanding talks from University of Toronto astronomers and special guest speakers from the OSIRIS-REx asteroid and ExoMars missions. Plus, games, special prizes and food at a special venue: the newly renovated Great Hall! You’ll also have opportunities to talk one-on-one with University of Toronto astronomers over your favourite pint.

When looking at happy & floating astronauts aboard the ISS, all may look calm, but it is certainly not. Come and hear about the myriad hazards to the body in near earth orbit. Our talk will focus on various disease states from space travel, and the clever ways space medicine tries to mitigate the risks. After the talk, you will think twice about taking a ride 200 km straight up.

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is on its way to asteroid Bennu on a sample return mission. What questions are mission scientists hoping to answer? Who gets to play with the space dirt? Why was Bennu chosen? Will we need Bruce Willis to blow it up? Learn the answers to these questions and more!

Dr. Michele Mosca, Quantum Information Scientist Quantum theory rewrote the rulebook for physics over a century ago. We have since moved from being curious spectators of the quantum realm to active participants, intricately choreographing quantum effects to achieve specific objectives. We harness quantum effects for precise measurement, more powerful computation, more secure communication, and many more applications yet to be discovered.

In honour of Science Literacy Week, the McMaster Space Initiative Science Café is a night of learning filled with talks from local scientists in the McMaster community

A general presentation about the vastness of the Universe as well as about the DRAA will be followed by stargazing. The Crescent Moon, Saturn as well as other celestial objects will be observable (weather permitting).

The first exoplanet was found orbiting a Sun-like star in 1995. In the intervening 20 years, thousands of exoplanets and exoplanetary candidates have been detected suggesting that exoplanets are very common. That of course does not imply the Earth-like planets are common but again, recent statistics suggest that at least one star in 6 contains an Earth-like planet. With the detection of an exoplanet in the Habitable Zone of Proxima Centauri b, speculation and excitement has been aroused about the possibility of exploring that planetary system during the 21 st century.

Professor Yanqin Wu investigates the formation and evolution of planets, both inside and outside our own Solar System. Her current attention is devoted to a recently discovered puzzle, the presence of planetary systems around white dwarf stars, stars that have lived through their lives and are cooling off quietly in their cemeteries. The observational evidence is difficult to square with our current knowledge about the extra-solar planetary systems, and perhaps a new picture is required.

Acclaimed SF author Robert J. Sawyer discusses the writer's life and craft.

What would the Solar System look like today if we turned back time and started again? What would life be like if Jesus Christ never existed? These are just a couple of questions that can be answered using Chaos Theory, a fascinating process pervading all facets of the universe from galactic evolution to financial markets. Chaos Theory can be difficult to grasp since it operates on complex systems, but in this lecture Ari Silburt will explain it in simple terms anyone can understand, giving numerous astronomical and everyday examples.