To celebrate the arrival of the new Horizons Probe at Pluto next week the W. M. Keck Observatory is holding a special lecture.
Tantalizing signs of geology on Pluto are revealed in this image from New Horizons taken on July 9, 2015 from 3.3 million miles (5.4 million kilometers) away. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research InstituteNASA Spacecraft New Horizons Pluto Flyby:
Special Talk by NASA Scientist Eliot Young
Just hours before their observing run at Keck Observatory will start, NASA scientists Eliot Young and his team will give a talk in the Hualalai Conference room at Keck Observatory’s headquarters in Waimea. Join us at 7:00p to learn about the science of Pluto, the Kuiper belt, dwarf planets and more.
At 1:49am the next morning, the NASA New Horizons spacecraft is scheduled to make its closest approach to Pluto, and Young’s team will be collecting close-up data on the dwarf planet and other distant solar system objects for the first time ever.
Young is the principal scientist from the Southwest Research Institute, one of the partners involved in the building of the New Horizons craft.
A reminder that the Keck public lecture is tomorrow night…
Astronomy Talk: America’s Space Program – NASA’s Roadmap to Tomorrow’s Missions
This portrait looking down on Saturn and its rings was created from images obtained by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft on Oct. 10, 2013. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/G. UgarkovicNASA Administrator Charles Bolden will discuss America’s space program and the challenges the agency faces for the missions of tomorrow. Using a stepping stone approach that builds on the capabilities of our unique orbiting laboratory – the International Space Station – the growing abilities of commercial providers to reach space, and a new rocket and crew vehicle to travel to deep space, NASA is extending human reach into the solar system even as its amazing science missions are rewriting textbooks about our universe and inspiring the next generation of explorers.
The agency currently has spacecraft speeding toward Jupiter and Pluto and roving on Mars, and is searching for planets that could potentially harbor life beyond our solar system. An unprecedented mission to capture and redirect an asteroid to an orbit near to Earth is in the planning stages, and the Space Launch System and Orion Crew vehicle are reaching new milestones in development to take astronauts to an asteroid and on to Mars.
NASA has been a 1/6 partner in the W. M. Keck Observatory since 1996 and it is an honor to offer this program to the community.
Join us for an astronomy talk tonight at the Kahilu Theater in Waimea…
First Light in the Universe: The End of the Cosmic Dark Ages
Dr. Michael Bolte from UC Santa Cruz
7:00pm, June 19th 2014
Kahilu Theater, Waimea
Free and open to the public
In the first several hundred million years after the Big Bang, the Universe was too hot for stars and galaxies to form. As the Universe cooled and its expansion slowed, gravity caused the first stars to collapse and re-light the Universe. Most theories suggest these first stars were unusual super-massive objects that evolved quickly and ended their lives in gigantic explosions. In this talk, Dr. Michael Bolte from UC Santa Cruz will discuss observations from Keck Observatory that identify the physical properties of the first stars based on the chemical elements they produced as they ended their lives.
Join us for an astronomy talk on June 19 at the Kahilu Theater in Waimea…
First Light in the Universe: The End of the Cosmic Dark Ages
Dr. Michael Bolte from UC Santa Cruz
7:00pm, June 19th 2014
Kahilu Theater, Waimea
Free and open to the public
In the first several hundred million years after the Big Bang, the Universe was too hot for stars and galaxies to form. As the Universe cooled and its expansion slowed, gravity caused the first stars to collapse and re-light the Universe. Most theories suggest these first stars were unusual super-massive objects that evolved quickly and ended their lives in gigantic explosions. In this talk, Dr. Michael Bolte from UC Santa Cruz will discuss observations from Keck Observatory that identify the physical properties of the first stars based on the chemical elements they produced as they ended their lives.
The Galactic Center Group at UCLA has used the W. M. Keck Observatory for the past two decades to observe the center of the Milky Way at the highest angular resolution possible. This work established the existence of a supermassive black hole at the heart of our Galaxy. In this talk, Dr. Leo Meyer, Research Scientist for the UCLA Galactic Center Group, will focus on the black hole itself and the gas that it swallows. The feeding of the black hole is a turbulent process resulting in highly variable emission of infrared light. Observations of this variability provide a great way to learn about the black hole and its immediate environment.
Stars orbiting the black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy, credit: UCLA Zooming into the Center of our Galaxy Dr. Leo Meyer – UCLA
May 20, 2014
Show starts at 7 p.m.
Kahilu Theatre, Waimea
If you did not make a point to come to the last Keck lecture you missed a fun night.
Keck astronomer Greg Doppmann lecturing on the spectra of planet forming disksOur regular free lecture featured one of Keck’s own this month. Greg Doppmann gave a very informative talk on using one of the Keck spectrographs, NIRSPEC, to examine the inner planet forming disks around young stars. In the near infrared it is possible to determine the presence of water and organic compounds in the material that rocky world may form from.
Greg did a very nice job of explaining spectroscopy. this is never easy, the details can get pretty technical. Making sense of spectra while talking to a general audience is a neat accomplishment. This is even worse when you are talking about the spectra of water in the near infrared where there are thousands of emission lines. Good graphics and a step by step explanation worked, animations of dancing water molecules, and dancing Greg not withstanding.
Tony with a large line of folks waiting to see Jupiter in his 12″ ‘scopeAfter the lecture everyone was able to enjoy great views of the Moon and Jupiter through telescopes set up by our astronomy club. We got lucky, the notoriously fickle Waimea weather gave us a break. At the start of the lecture is was raining, not hard, just the usual Waimea mist. As Greg’s lecture wound down I ducked outside to be greeted by a bright Moon and no clouds. Somewhat stunned I hurried back inside to give the thumbs up to the crew, who scrambled to setup the ‘scopes before the Q&A session ended.
When the crowd poured out we were ready. A lot of folks stayed to view, and five ‘scopes were in operation to meet them. I have to give thanks to Tony, Chris, Rickey, Cliff, Bernt, and Purcynth, who manned the scopes and answered the flood of questions. As we were breaking down the clouds were rolling back in, very good timing indeed.
The lecture was recorded and should show up on the Keck website soon. I’ll try to post a link to it when it does appear. In the meantime, if you have not already done so, get your email on the Keck Nation list so you know about these events before they happen.
Join us for a free astronomy lecture at Waimea’s Kahilu Theater…
Artist impression of the planet Kepler-78b and its host star. Credit: Karen Teramura (UH/IfA)The Search for Other Earths
Andrew Howard – University of Hawai’i
Andrew Howard, astronomer from the University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy, will give an illuminating talk about the hunt for exoplanets and the quest for another Earth. Since 1995, more than 3,000 exoplanets have been discovered. Many of these planets look nothing like the planets of our Solar System — strange orbits, unusual compositions, and unknown beginnings. Dr. Howard will tour this diverse landscape of exoplanets, including the recent discoveries of planets the size of Earth.
Astronomy Talk: The Wonder of Comet ISON, A Relic From the Beginning of the Solar System
Thursday October 24, 2013
07:00 pm – 08:00 pm
An image of comet C/2012 S1 ISON acquired by the Hubble Space Telescope on October 9th, 2013, credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage TeamKahilu Theatre
Dr. Carey Lisse, head of NASA’s Comet ISON Observation Campaign, will present a timely talk on how and when comets were formed, and where they come from. Also a Senior Research Scientist with Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Lisse will relate how comets may have helped start life on the Earth, and also how they may have ended it for millions of creatures at least 4 times in the past. He’ll also give a bit of the history of comet observing by mankind, and explain how Comet 2012 S1 (ISON) fits into this picture of comets as relics from the beginning of our solar system.
An artist’s illustration of the exoplanet PH1, Credit: Haven Giguere/YaleDr. Charles Beichman, executive director of NASA’s Exoplanet Science Institute at Caltech, will talk about how the dynamic duo of NASA’s Space Missions and Keck Observatory has led to some of the most exciting astronomy results in recent history.
Tuesday
June 25, 2013
Starts at 7 p.m.
Kahilu Theatre, Waimea
Free and Open to the Public
NASA’s Space Missions have identified more than 3,000 possible planets outside of our solar system and Keck Observatory has confirmed the existence of nearly half of the some 900 proven to exist. Join us for another Astronomy Talk to hear about this fascinating field of science unfolding before us.
These lectures are supported by Rob and Terry Ryan and Keck Observatory’s Rising Stars Fund.
Planets, Stars, and How to Live on a Space Station
May 23rd Astronomy Program
Kailua Kona Library
3:30 PM to 4:30 PM
Allan Honey, a program engineer at Keck Observatory, will talk about the different distances in space between stars and planets. Allan’s son, Ben Honey, a flight controller for the International Space Station at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, will explain what happens when astronauts live and work in space. Allan Honey has worked at the Keck Observatory for more than 26 years, and Ben Honey grew up on the Big Island before leaving to study at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
