Monthly Meeting

Location: Streamed online.

This talk will describe the intimate relationship between astronomy and the Periodic Table by looking at how everything we learn about the distant Universe comes from dissecting starlight and starlight comes from excited atoms changing their energy states. We will start with a brief history of the Universe to see where atoms come from and the forces that hold them together. We will discuss how the electron shell structure of the atom allows them to give off light and organizes them into the Periodic Table. We will look at how the light from distant atoms in stars and galaxies changes as the galaxies move away from us. We will see how spectroscopy on starlight leads to the expansion of the Universe and the acceleration of the expansion now thought to be caused by Dark Energy. All of this comes from an understanding of the unique “fingerprints” of atoms in the light they give off. Larry will also show the work that he did on the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Telescope.

This event is open to the public and free of charge.