Four-Hundred Years of Cosmic Discovery: Celebrating the International Year of Astronomy
McKay, Timothy - University of Michigan
2009-02-08 10:32:29-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:09:36

During the summer of 1609, Galileo Galilei first turned his hand-made telescope to the sky, and our isolation from the cosmos was over. This talk will review, at breakneck speed, the ensuing 400 years of progress in astrophysics. We will see how generations of rashly curious scientists, armed with increasingly ingenious instruments, have erased the division between Earth and sky. We will also join the world in recognizing 2009 as the International Year of Astronomy.

Full Record

Four-Hundred Years of Cosmic Discovery: Celebrating the International Year of Astronomy [DUPLICATE]
McKay, Timothy - University of Michigan
2009-02-08 10:32:29-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:09:36

During the summer of 1609, Galileo Galilei first turned his hand-made telescope to the sky, and our isolation from the cosmos was over. This talk will review, at breakneck speed, the ensuing 400 years of progress in astrophysics. We will see how generations of rashly curious scientists, armed with increasingly ingenious instruments, have erased the division between Earth and sky. We will also join the world in recognizing 2009 as the International Year of Astronomy.

Full Record

How Did Earth Get Its Water
Bergin, Ted - University of Michigan
2009-02-14 10:30:39-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 00:44:41

In this talk we will explore the chemistry of our own origins with a focus on water, the most important molecule for life on our planet. We will discuss how water is formed in the depths of interstellar space and was incorporated into the young Earth. We will also consider whether and how other water-rich planets might be found.

Full Record

Building Planets: When and How?
Calvet, Nuria - University of Michigan
2009-03-07 10:32:36-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 00:55:00

During the past five years, the Spitzer Space Telescope has made it possible to conduct large surveys at sensitivities and wavelengths that were formerly unattainable from the ground. These surveys have given us unprecedented information on where stars form, what is the nature of their surrounding disks, and how and when planets begin to form on those disks. We will review this information in this talk.

Full Record

Amateur Astronomy: From Ann Arbor to the Universe
University Lowbrow Astronomers - University of Michigan
2009-03-14 10:32:08-04:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:11:22

Astronomy is not just for the professionals. Everyone can explore planets, comets, star clusters and galaxies using backyard telescopes and binoculars. In this talk, the University Lowbrow Astronomers will show us how.

Full Record

Supermassive Black Holes and the Evolution of Galaxies
Richstone, Doug - University of Michigan
2009-03-21 10:30:38-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:08:43

Powerful quasars discovered in the 1960s hinted at the existence of supermassive black holes. But their existence and ubiquity was only firmly established in the 1990s. Supermassive black holes have been with us since the birth of galaxies. They influence galaxy structure in ways we can see, and probably other ways not yet understood.

Full Record

Black Holes Along the Cosmic Time
Volonteri, Marta - University of Michigan
2009-03-28 10:29:59-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:00:05

We detect supermassive black holes in galaxy centers today. Their masses can be millions or billions or suns, almost as massive as a dwarf galaxy. What are the origins of these black holes? Volonteri will discuss how these black holes formed shortly after the Big Bang, and what their role on our galaxy is.

Full Record

Milky Way Galaxy: Keeper of the Darkest Secrets of the Universe
Gnedin, Oleg - University of Michigan
2009-04-04 10:28:32-05:00
Ann Arbor, MI - University of Michigan - 170 Dennison
Duration: 01:05:45

Our cosmic backyard contains keys to the biggest questions in the Universe: the nature and structure of dark matter. Gnedin will discuss current theoretical and observational studies of the distribution of dark matter on the smallest scales and the search for the dark matter particle.

Full Record