Main Presentation:  

Large Telescopes part 2

Presenter:  Stephen Ferris

The first presentation will be Large Telescopes part 2 and will be presented by Stephen Ferris.

Historical Astronomer of the Month:

 Notable Chinese Astronomers

Presenter:  Douglas Smith

This month we will cover some Notable Chinese Astronomers.
This will be presented by Douglas Smith.

Historical Astronomer of the Month:

Gerard Kuiper

Presenter:  Stephen Ferris

Our astronomer spotlight for the month is for Gerard Kuiper presented by Stephen Ferris.

Main Presentation:  

Meteor Showers

Presenter:  Connor Justice

Our main topic will be on Meteor Showers presented by Connor Justice.

Historical Astronomer of the Month:

Astronomers who came between Ptolemy and Copernicus

Presenter:  Peter Hermes

Pete Hermes will be giving a presentation on astronomers who came between Ptolemy and Copernicus.

Main Presentation:  

Using and navigating the hand controller for Celestron GoTo telescopes

Presenter:  Connor Justice

Our main topic this month will be a walkthrough on using and navigating the hand controller for Celestron GoTo telescopes.

Historical Astronomer of the Month:

Ptolemy

Presenter:  Peter Hermes

This month our astronomer spotlight will be on the Greek astronomer Ptolemy presented by Peter Hermes.

Main Presentation:  

Lunar Craters

Presenter:  Doug Smith

Our main topic this month is on Lunar Craters by Doug Smith.

6:30 pm – Main Presentation

TITLE:  A JWST View of Starburst Galaxies: Sweet Data Coming Soon!

PRESENTATION:  The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has already produced stunning results since it began sending back images and data in July. Among its first programs, JWST will study two famous “starburst” galaxies: M82 (the Cigar Galaxy) and NGC253 (the Sculptor Galaxy), as part of program #1701 in which Dr. Levy is deeply involved. These two well-studied galaxies are relatively nearby and are undergoing an intense burst of star formation at their centers. During this talk, Dr. Levy will highlight some of the key observations and results we have learned so far; from the “super” star clusters powering these galaxies’ extreme star formation to the large-scale outflows of material being expelled from them. Dr. Levy will explain the goals of her team’s JWST program and will show some preliminary images from JWST that have just been delivered.

BIO:  Dr. Rebecca Levy is an expert on measuring the effects of stars on their environments in nearby galaxies. She uses telescopes across the electromagnetic spectrum and around the globe to measure the motions of gas in and around galaxies. She is currently a National Science Foundation Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellow at Steward Observatory. Dr. Levy obtained her PhD in 2021 from the University of Maryland, where she studied the very center of a nearby “starbursting” galaxy NGC253 as well as ionized gas around galaxies. Dr. Levy obtained her B.S. degrees in Astronomy and Physics from the University of Arizona in 2015, and she is delighted to be back in Tucson for her postdoc position.

6:30 pm – Main Presentation

TITLE:  Looking For Life: From Icy Comet Belts to the Habitable Zone

PRESENTATION:  One of the main goals of astronomical sciences is to unravel whether we are alone in the Universe. In the next decade, exoplanetary science will focus on developing the technology for direct observation of exoplanets orbiting in the so-called Habitable Zone (HZ) of their host stars. However, it takes more than orbiting the HZ for a given planet to be a relevant target for the search for exolife. Dr. Virginie Faramaz will talk about the best candidate systems, and how the ‘debris disks’ beyond the HZ zone—in reservoirs analogous to the Solar System’s Kuiper Belt and Asteroid Belt—carry the seeds of life to the system’s innermost parts. Dr. Faramaz will explain how planets, comets, and dust grains are interconnected, as well as the techniques and equipment used to get information on their components.

BIO:  Dr. Virginie Faramaz is a global specialist on planets and debris disk interactions. In her own words, she was “born and raised in Savoy in the French Alps, where we are crazy over fondue, raclette, tartiflette, and basically any dish that contains cheese, ham and potatoes.” Her PhD centered on theoretical aspects of planet-debris disks interactions. She worked with data obtained at ALMA in Chile’s Atacama Desert, and at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in Santiago, Chile. In 2017, she became an Exoplanet Science Initiative Fellow at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and also worked with the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute (NExSci) at Caltech in California. As an Assistant Research Professor at UA’s Steward Observatory, she uses the Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer to further her projects. Dr. Faramaz enjoys teaching science to a variety of audiences, especially children.

Special Note: The Raymond E. White 21” telescope will be available to view through, from 7 P.M. to 10:30 P.M., courtesy of Steward Observatory.