This event has passed. It took place on Tuesday, June 7, 2022.
Monthly Meeting
Public
Listening to Black Holes
Presenter: Dr. Maya Fishbach
NOTE: the doors will be open from 7:00 – 7:30 pm. A phone number to call to be let in will be placed on a sign at the entrance door.
Black holes are the most extreme objects in our universe. Because they are so dense, not even light can escape from a black hole. Thus, we cannot directly see the many black holes that are out there. However, using extremely sensitive instruments — known as gravitational-wave observatories — we can “hear” when two black holes crash into each other, because they emit gravitational waves. Using our gravitational-wave observatories LIGO and Virgo, we have “heard” the collision from over 80 pairs of black holes. These discoveries are teaching us how black holes are made in our universe.
Dr. Maya Fishbach is a gravitational-wave astronomer, working at Northwestern University as a NASA Einstein Fellow. As a member of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration, she observes black holes and neutron stars with gravitational waves. She grew up in Chicago, and got her PhD from the University of Chicago in 2020.
The public is welcome to attend, free of charge.
This event is open to the public and free of charge.