Caltech Astro

Happening tonight @ 8PM!

Are there other planets out there like Earth? How can we find them? Join us this Friday for a Stargazing Lecture on exoplanets by NASA JPL exoplanet researcher Dr. Anjali Tripathi. Telescopes afterwards and live-streamed on YouTube!

How do astronomers discover planets orbiting distant stars when the planets themselves are too faint to see? Will we find another world like Earth? Join us for our next Stargazing Lecture with NASA JPL scientist Dr. Anjali Tripathi this month! outreach.astro.caltech.edu

Dark skies, the Milky Way, and thousands of people exploring the Universe. We had a great weekend at the Great Basin Astronomy Festival, sharing telescopes, science talks, and astronomy with visitors from across the country. Thanks to Great Basin National Park for hosting.

What can light echoes tell us about black holes? How do astronomers connect simulated galaxies with the real Universe? Join us tonight at 7:30PM for Astronomy on Tap: two short science talks, pub trivia, and guided stargazing. Free and open to all!

Caltech's Owens Valley Radio Observatory is hosting a series of free public astronomy lectures in Bishop this fall. Hear about black holes, cosmic rays, solar explosions, and radio bursts. Talks will be at Cerro Coso Community College in Bishop and are free and open to all.

How have ground-based telescopes transformed our view of the Universe? We recently hosted Kaitlyn Shin to discuss the history and science of ground-based telescopes at Astronomy on Tap. Kaitlyn's presentation is now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HAs...

Our scientists helped out with the Sequoia Dark Sky Festival this month. We brought telescopes (including a radio telescope), hosted an Astrophysicist Q&A Panel, and gave science presentations on cosmology and asteroids. Great trees, great skies, and great crowds!

Exciting news for astronomy in Pasadena! NASA has selected PRIMA, the PRobe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics, to move forward in development. Congratulations to the entire PRIMA team, including our colleagues at NASA JPL and IPAC here in Pasadena! www.nasa.gov/news-release...

What can we learn about black holes from their surroundings? How do galaxies change over billions of years? Join us next week to learn about these topics and more at Astronomy on Tap, featuring telescopes, trivia, science, and drinks!

What secrets are hidden beneath the clouds of Venus? What can our Venus teach us about the evolution of Earth-like worlds? Last week, NASA scientist Amy Hofmann joined us to discuss DAVINCI, an upcoming NASA mission to visit Venus. Now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1alg...

Happening tonight! Join us to learn about Venus and look through a telescope. In-person and live-streamed on YouTube: outreach.astro.caltech.edu

Join us this Friday to learn all about Venus and DAVINCI, NASA’s upcoming mission to explore our mysterious planetary neighbor!

How can we use echoes of light to map the regions around supermassive black holes? How do astronomers connect computer simulations of galaxies with what we actually see in the Universe? Join us Monday, September 28th at 7:30PM for Astronomy on Tap! outreach.astro.caltech.edu/aot

What makes a solar eruption extreme? Why are some eruptions from the Sun far more powerful than others? We recently hosted solar physicist Gabriel Muro to discuss the physics behind solar eruptions at Astronomy on Tap. Now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYNd...

Join us this weekend for the Sequoia Dark Sky Festival, featuring science talks, telescope viewing, and more! Our team will give presentations on asteroids, supernovae, and cosmology. We'll also have telescopes, including a radio telescope to detect hydrogen gas in the Milky Way!

Last month, we teamed up with Lassen Volcanic National Park for Dark Skies at Lassen, a weekend of stargazing and science! We had great weather, beautiful views, and lots of astronomy throughout the weekend. Join us at Sequoia or Great Basin this weekend for similar events!

We'll be in Nevada this weekend for the Great Basin Astronomy Festival, featuring science presentations, astrophotography, and telescopes in some of the darkest skies in the USA. Join us for astronomy as well as mountains, trails, and the oldest living trees in the world!

What happens when a star ventures too close to a supermassive black hole? How can a black hole's gravity literally tear a star apart? We recently hosted researcher Xiaoshan Huang to discuss these phenomena at a recent Astronomy on Tap. Now on Youtube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMru...

Did Venus once have oceans? Why did Earth's nearest planetary neighbor become such a hellish world? Join us for a lecture by NASA JPL scientist Dr. Amy Hofmann on Sept 18 @ 8PM. Talk followed by stargazing with telescopes. In-person and on YouTube. Free! outreach.astro.caltech.edu

Come look through a telescope under some of the darkest skies in the USA! Join us next week at Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada for the Great Basin Astronomy Festival, September 10–12. Free and open to all. www.nps.gov/grba/planyou...

Join us tonight to learn all about telescopes, past, present, and future, including the Roman Telescope launched yesterday! Telescopes will be set up for people to view the sky, and there will be a telescope as a prize at our astronomy-themed pub trivia! See you at 7:30PM!

What causes gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful explosions in the Universe? We recently hosted Caltech PhD student Delina Levine to give a presentation at Astronomy on Tap all about gamma-ray bursts. Her presentation is now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rdn...

There will be a partial lunar eclipse tonight! You'll be able to watch the shadow of the Earth pass across the Moon, partially blocking its illumination from the Sun. For west coasters, the eclipse takes place between 7:32 PM and 10:52 PM. svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5672/

Do you like nature and astronomy? Join us in 2 weeks for the Sequoia Dark Sky Festival, September 11–13! We'll be joining the National Park Service for a weekend of stargazing, science presentations, and more. sequoiaparksconservancy.org/dark-sky-fes...

Telescopes are astronomers' primary tools for exploring the Universe. But how do they work, and what might the next generation of telescopes look like? Join us at Astronomy on Tap next week to learn about new telescope designs that could transform how we study the cosmos!

Do electrons really spin? Last week, Professor Chip Sebens joined us to explore this deceptively simple question and took us on a journey through electromagnetism, quantum mechanics, and the philosophy of physics. His presentation is now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-mN...

Happening tonight! Join us for guided stargazing with telescopes and discussions of how quantum mechanics views the world around us!

Join us this Friday night to learn about quantum mechanics and what actually is going on inside the atom. Bring your philosophy questions for our panel of philosophers of physics!

How did astronomers discover that our Milky Way is just one of countless galaxies in the Universe? What role did the 100-inch telescope at Mount Wilson play in this story? We hosted Dr. Jeff Rich from Carnegie Observatories to discuss these topics: youtu.be/BZNGzm6SvvE

How do astronomers observe a universe filled with light our eyes can't see? Why are some telescopes built on mountains while others are launched into space? Join us Monday, August 31st for our next Astronomy on Tap. outreach.astro.caltech.edu

What exactly is an electron--is it a tiny particle, a wave, or something else entirely? What does quantum mechanics really tell us about the nature of an electron? Join us for our next Stargazing Lecture on August 21st. outreach.astro.caltech.edu

Happening this weekend. See you in Lassen!

Want to learn about the Moon from someone who has been there? We hosted Apollo 17 astronaut Harrison Schmitt this week for a presentation on geology. Dr. Schmitt is a Caltech alum ('57) and one of the four surviving people who have walked on the Moon. www.youtube.com/watch?v=yA7W...

Want to hear from someone who walked on the Moon? Harrison Schmitt, one of the four surviving astronauts to have walked on the Moon, will be giving a talk about his experiences today at 2PM. Live-streamed on YouTube.

Happening Tonight @ 7:30PM. Join us for a beer and black holes!

How can black holes serve as cosmic fossils, revealing the lives of the massive stars that created them billions of years ago? Floor Broekgaarden, astrophysicist at UC San Diego discussed this topic at Astronomy on Tap! Her presentation is on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzn5...

Caltech will be hosting astronaut and statesman Harrison Schmitt on Tuesday, August 4 @ 2PM. Dr. Schmitt served as the Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 17 and is one of the four surviving people to have walked on the Moon. For more information, see: outreach.astro.caltech.edu

What can an x-ray view of the sky tell us about dark energy and how the universe evolved over billions of years? Last month we hosted Esra Bulbul, the lead cosmologist working on the eROSITA x-ray mission, to discuss the mission and relevant science at our Astronomy on Tap event.

Join us next Monday to hear all about black holes tearing apart stars and extreme solar eruptions at our next Astronomy on Tap!

NASA's Roman Space Telescope launches in a month. Last week, NASA scientist Lee Armus joined us to talk about the mission and its science goals, from exoplanet direct imaging to studying the nature of dark matter and dark energy! His presentation is now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGVa...

Join us tonight to learn all about the new NASA Roman Space Telescope and all of the cool science it will do: cosmology, exoplanets, galaxies, and more! It's launching in a month! Telescopes after the presentation. In-person and live-streamed on YouTube.

Do you like national parks and astronomy? Join us in two weeks at Lassen National Park for a weekend of astronomy. There will be guided stargazing with telescopes, constellation tours, and presentations from NASA+Caltech scientists! www.nps.gov/lavo/planyou...

How do black holes literally tear apart stars? What causes the Sun to erupt and send material into space? Join us Monday, August 3rd at 7:30PM at our next Astronomy on Tap. Science, telescopes, pub trivia--all for free! outreach.astro.caltech.edu/aot

There is an article in the Caltech Magazine about our recent City of Astronomy Science Festival. Hopefully we will do this again. caltechmagazine.squarespace.com/post/pasaden...

What goes on inside of a star cluster? What happens to black holes that form there? We recently hosted Professor Kyle Kremer to describe the extreme conditions in these dense environments and their consequences. Now up on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYAB...

Join us in a week for our next Stargazing Lecture, introducing the NASA Roman Space Telescope, which will launch into space in 6 weeks and transform our understanding of the cosmos!

We helped host the City of Astronomy Science Festival last month, featuring lots of science activities over a Sunday afternoon. It was magical with over 2000 attendees, including Mayor Gordo and Congresswoman Chu. For more information, see: www.cityofastronomy.org/about

Happening tonight!

Is there significant evidence for extraterrestrial life? What do scientists think about aliens? We recently hosted Dr. Tom Rice, Professor of Physics at George Washington University as he discussed this exciting topic. Now up on our YouTube channel: youtu.be/jt7ObvfM0xI