Star Talks: A Decade of Gravitational-Wave Astrophysics with LIGO

PLEASE NOTE THE DATE CHANGE FOR THIS MONTH'S STAR TALKS EVENT. 

LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, has detected hundreds of binary black hole mergers since the discovery of GW150914 over 10 years ago, and the tenth anniversary of gravitational-wave astrophysics was marked with a paper proving Hawking's black hole theorem with the most precisely measured black hole system to date.  Dr. Brennan Hughey will give an update on the past, present, and future of the LIGO experiment, including things happening right in Prescott with our four faculty member LIGO group.

Dr. Brennan Hughey is a professor of physics and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, ERAU. Dr. Hughey holds a Ph.D. in physics from the University of Wisconsin - Madison. His doctoral thesis was done with the IceCube neutrino detector experiment, and his graduate work included a trip to the South Pole, where the detector is located. After earning his Ph.D. he joined the LIGO collaboration in the search for gravitational waves.

Star Talks is a monthly lecture series taking place on the first Wednesday of the month exploring various topics about astronomy. Star Talks are held in partnership with ​Prescott Astronomy Club and presented with funding from Friends of the Prescott Public Library.