Friday May 11 Member Night
Host: Randy Attwood
Short video:Kepler update
James Beckwith:Astronomy in the News
Randy Attwood:Observing the Sun and Moon
** break **
Randy Attwood:The 28th National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs.
Andrew Opala:Making a Telescope Mirror Out of Fibregass
Randy Attwood:The Sky This Month
The next MEMBERS MEETING of the RASC Mississauga Centre will be held this FRIDAY MAY 11 at 8:00 p.m. at The University of Toronto, Mississauga Campus, in lecture hall SE2082, in the William Davis Building (formerly known as the South Building).
Park in lot 4 or the new parkade, just south of the William Davis Building. Enter through the Fitness centre, walk up the stairs until you reach the main corridor then turn right. Look for the Mississauga Centre sign in front of the lecture room.
Saturday May 12, 2012
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Event: Science Rendezvous at University of Toronto, Mississauga
Visit our booth in the Meeting Place to learn about the upcoming June 5th Transit ofspans several areas in theoretical cosmology including the growth of structure in the early universe, inflationary origins of statistical anisotropy in the cosmic microwave background, modified gravity theories, and gravitational lensing by dark matter subhalos.
May 25 Speaker Meeting
Title: Inflation: The Universe's Growth Spurt
Speaker: Adrienne Erickcek,
Postdoctoral Fellow, Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics and Postdoctoral Researcher, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics
The Universe used to be hot! The amount of helium in the cosmos tells us that minutes after the Big Bang, the Universe was filled with plasma hotter than the core of the Sun. However, observations of the cosmic microwave background indicate that the Universe was not born as a fireball. Instead, it seems that the Universe started its life devoid of any matter or radiation; in the beginning, there was only a mysterious energy source that caused the Universe to expand exponentially. This cosmic growth spurt is called inflation, and it provided the seeds that grew into galaxies. I will present a brief history of the Universe, focusing on how inflation solves the problems of the old "hot Big Bang" model. I will also describe how we hope to answer the big lingering questions of inflationary cosmology: what drove inflation, and is there a connection between inflation and the current acceleration of the cosmic expansion?
Dr. Adrienne Erickcek received her Ph.D. in physics from the California Institute of Technology in 2009 and now holds a joint postdoctoral fellowship at the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Physics and the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. She is also a junior fellow in Cosmology and Gravity program in the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research. Her research spans several areas in theoretical cosmology including the growth of structure in the early universe, inflationary origins of statistical anisotropy in the cosmic microwave background, modified gravity theories, and gravitational lensing by dark matter subhalos.
Tuesday May 29, 2012 Public Star Party
Facilitator: Randy Attwood
Weather permitting, enjoy views through large telescopes. Explore the Universe with members of the Mississauga Centre, Royal Astronomical Society of Canada and the Earthshine Astronomy and Space Science Organization. For more information see Public Star Parties .
Riverwood Park on the lawn in front of Chappell House, 4300 Riverwood Park Lane, Mississauga, ON L5C 2S7
Tuesday June 5, 2012
Event: Transit of Venus 6:00–10:00 p.m.
Join us outside the William G. Davis Building (South Building) of the University of Toronto, Mississauga for the last chance to see a transit of Venus this century. Safely view the planet as it travels across the bace of the sun. In addition to an exhibit detailing the history Venus Transit observations over the past three centuries, we will set up properly equipped solar telescopes on the hill beside the walkway between parking lot 4 and the main entrance to the William J. Davis (old South) Building. While not viewing the transit through a telescope, you will be able to safely observe the sun through special filtered glasses we will have available.
The Transit will occur regardless of the weather, but our event will depend on clear skies.
Friday June 8 Member Night
Host: TBD
June 22 Speaker Meeting
Title: Astronomical Connections - Weaving the Stories of Discovery and the Universe
Speaker: Mubdi Rahman, Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Toronto
Mubdi Rahman is a Ph. D. candidate in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto who will be starting as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Johns Hopkins University in September 2012. His primary research interests include understanding the effects of star formation on the environment of the galaxy as a whole. His work on the discovery of the most massive young stellar association, The Dragonfish Association, has recently been featured in New Scientist, Science, Popular Science and MSNBC. An avid astronomer from even his earliest of years, Mubdi is active not only in research but also in the promotion and outreach of Astronomy and Science as a whole.
