Add to Calendar 2026-01-12T16:00:00 2026-01-12T17:00:00 ASTRO colloquium with Gary Bernstein Event Information: This page will be updated with the speaker's information, presentation abstract and resource links, soon! Event Location: HENN 318

Add to Calendar 2026-01-19T16:00:00 2026-01-19T17:00:00 The Kuiper Belt vs. the Billionaire Space Race Event Information:   Abstract: Canadian-led teams have been using CFHT over the past 5 years to discover new trans-Neptunian Objects on weird orbits.  The high orbital precision LiDO Survey has discovered dozens of resonant TNOs, while the deep CLASSY Survey has discovered fewer distant TNOs than expected.  These TNOs are clues about the formation and evolution of our Solar System, and what might lie beyond Neptune.   While these surveys have been running, SpaceX has launched over 10,000 satellites for its Starlink megaconstellation, which is impacting astronomy research across the spectrum.  The huge number of current and planned satellites have terrifying implications for atmospheric pollution, ground casualty risks, and the possibility of a runaway collisional cascade in Low Earth Orbit. Come learn why Saskatchewan is such a good satellite pollution detector, and what happens when you find space debris on your farm and silent SpaceX employees show up in a rented U-Haul truck to be greeted by an astronomer and a dozen of Saskatchewan's finest local journalists. Companies have now filed for a million future satellites, including data centres, space mirrors, and sunshades, so we'll end with a discussion of ways you can help fight for regulation and safe use of satellites in orbit.  Bio: I am an Associate Professor of Astronomy at Campion College, and also part of the Department of Physics in the University of Regina, SK, Canada. Previously, I was a Plaskett Fellow at NRC-Herzberg in Victoria, BC, Canada. I am a dynamical modeler with a strong background in observational astronomy. I study the orbits of planets and how they evolve over time. By studying the orbits of Kuiper Belt objects and carefully taking into account observational biases, we can learn about how the giant planets migrated in the early days of the Solar System. In exoplanet systems, we can use the structure of debris disks (dusty disks around stars made by colliding asteroids) to find exoplanets that would otherwise be invisible. I'm co-PI of the Classical and Large-a Solar System (CLASSY) Survey on CFHT, attempting to discover some of the smallest and most distant TNOs yet known. Lately I've spent a lot of time thinking about, modelling, and measuring pollution from satellites in low Earth orbit, which are increasing terrifyingly quickly, changing the night sky worldwide.    Learn More: About Samantha from her University of Regina faculty page: https://www.uregina.ca/science/physics/directory/faculty/samantha-lawler.html About her research: Sam Lawler About starlink's megaconstellation: Definition from Britannica online: Megaconstellation | Definition, Starlink, Guowang, OneWeb, & Facts | Britannica Article from Science Reader: SpaceX Expands Starlink Megaconstellation with New Launch Article from Live Science: What goes up must come down: How megaconstellations like SpaceX's Starlink network pose a grave safety threat to us on Earth | Live Science About the Canada France Hawaii telescope: Canada France Hawaii Telescope Event Location: HENN 318

Add to Calendar 2026-02-02T16:00:00 2026-02-02T17:00:00 New Frontiers of Black Hole Feedback in Galaxy Clusters Event Information: Abstract: Galaxy clusters are fantastic laboratories for understanding black hole feedback processes. These massive cosmic structures provide a unique environment to study how AGN-driven jets transfer energy to the surrounding medium, generating shock fronts, sound waves, and turbulence. This feedback not only regulates cluster cores but also drives molecular outflows and redistributes metals within and beyond galaxies, illustrating how black holes act as the beating heart of galaxies and shape the cosmos over time. In this talk, I will review the current state of the field, focusing on how these powerful AGN-driven jets influence the properties of galaxy clusters across cosmic time. I will also present the first observations of the Perseus cluster made with the XRISM X-ray space telescope, highlighting XRISM's unprecedented capabilities in probing cluster dynamics. Lastly, I will share results from the new TNG-Cluster suite of Illustris cosmological simulations, providing new insights into the mechanisms of AGN feedback in these environments.  Bio: Dr. Julie Hlavacek-Larrondo is a leading astrophysicist at the Université de Montréal, where she heads the High-Energy and Extragalactic Astrophysics Group. She holds a prestigious Canada Research Chair in Observational Astrophysics of Black Holes, awarded to emerging world-class researchers recognized for their exceptional creativity and contributions to their fields. An expert on supermassive black holes—the titans residing at the centers of massive galaxies—Dr. Hlavacek-Larrondo combines cutting-edge machine learning techniques with observations from the world's most advanced telescopes across multiple wavelengths. Her work spans X-ray observatories like Chandra, XMM-Newton, and eROSITA; radio arrays including JVLA, GMRT, ATCA, and the upcoming SKA; and optical instruments such as Hubble Space Telescope (HST), VLT, and NASA's flagship JWST. Her research aims to unravel the complex role of black hole feedback in shaping galaxies—from regulating star formation and heating intergalactic gas to driving metal entrainment and influencing black hole growth itself. In addition, she explores a wide range of topics, including the observational signatures of radio halos in galaxy cluster mergers, the nature of hyper-luminous infrared galaxies, numerical simulations of relativistic jets, and the properties of compact objects. Before joining the Université de Montréal as a faculty member, Dr. Julie Hlavacek-Larrondo was an Einstein Fellow at Stanford University. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge. Raised in Montreal, Julie is of Chilean and Czech heritage. Her academic journey began in 2007 with a Bachelor's degree in physics from the Université de Montréal, followed by a Master's degree in astrophysics, where she focused on the kinematical analysis of Sculptor Group galaxies. A passionate advocate for diversity in science, she recently co-founded Parité sciences, a game-changing initiative that aims to reach gender parity in sciences.    Learn More: About Julie: https://www.astro.umontreal.ca/x-tra/?team=julie-hlavacek-larrondo https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/Prizes-Prix/McDonald-McDonald/Profiles-Profils/Larrondo-Larrondo_eng.asp https://www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca/chairholders-titulaires/profile-eng.aspx?profileId=3266 About Galaxy clusters: https://www.cfa.harvard.edu/research/topic/galaxy-clusters    Event Location: HENN 318

Add to Calendar 2026-02-09T16:00:00 2026-02-09T17:00:00 ASTRO Colloquium with Chiara Salemi Event Information: This page will be updated with the speaker's information, presentation abstract and resource links, soon! Event Location: HENN 318

Add to Calendar 2026-03-16T16:00:00 2026-03-16T17:00:00 A Galactic Exoplanet Census with the Roman Space Telescope Event Information:   Abstract: NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, with a planned launch in late 2026, will open up unprecedented discovery space in the infrared universe. Combining Hubble-like sensitivity and resolution with a field of view 100 times larger and a sky-mapping speed 1,000 times faster, Roman will conduct panoramic, high-resolution surveys that will transform our understanding of dark energy, exoplanetary systems, galactic structure, the solar system, and star formation — all while producing an enormous data set that will be analyzed for decades to come. One of Roman’s Core Community Surveys is the Roman Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey (RGBTDS), an ambitious program that will monitor 1.7 square degrees toward the crowded Galactic center with unprecedented precision and cadence. Over 440 days across six observing seasons, Roman will repeatedly image the same stars every 12 minutes, enabling the detection of planetary systems by using microlensing to reveal thousands of cold planets and elusive free-floating worlds, and transits to discover tens of thousands of hot and warm planets, including Earth-sized and larger worlds orbiting their stars. Together, these observations will deliver the first comprehensive galactic census of exoplanets, spanning all major stellar populations and probing planets with radii or masses above ~2× Earth’s at all separations, from hot Jupiters to icy wanderers beyond the snow line. I will highlight Roman’s revolutionary capabilities, preview its expected scientific yield, and describe the efforts of the Roman Galactic Exoplanet Survey Project Infrastructure Team (RGES-PIT), which is developing the framework, tools, and strategies to maximize the scientific return from the RGBTDS.  Bio: A member of the faculty since 2006, Prof. Gaudi is a leader in the discovery and statistical characterization of extrasolar planets using a variety of methods, including transits and gravitational microlensing. In 2008, he and his collaborators announced the discovery of the first Jupiter/Saturn analog. Prof Gaudi is deeply immersed in analytic and numerical techniques for assessing the yield, biases, and discovery potential of current and next-generation surveys to determine the demographics of exoplanets. More broadly, his interests revolve around the information content of large datasets. Prof. Gaudi is a member of the Science Definition Team for NASA’s Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), and is the chair-elect for the NASA Exoplanet Exploration Analysis Group. Widely recognized within the community for his work, Prof. Gaudi was the 2009 recipient of the Helen B. Warner Prize of the American Astronomical Society, received NSF CAREER and PECASE awards, was named a University Distinguished Scholar in 2016, and in 2017 he was awarded the NASA Outstanding Public Leadership Medal in recognition of his "outstanding leadership as the ExoPlanet Program Analysis Group Chairperson having significant impact on NASA's search for exoplanets and life in the universe." Learn More: View his webpage from Ohio State here: https://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/gaudi.1/index.html About the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Grace_Roman_Space_Telescope About the Roman Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey (RGBTDS): https://science.nasa.gov/mission/roman-space-telescope/galactic-bulge-time-domain-survey/ About Prof. Gaudi's areas of expertise: Extrasolar planets: https://science.nasa.gov/exoplanets/ About Starlight suppression technology: https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/programs/exep/technology/starshade/ About Astrobiology: https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/  Event Location: HENN 318

Add to Calendar 2026-03-23T16:00:00 2026-03-26T17:00:00 ASTRO Colloquium with Alex Pope Event Information: This page will be updated with the speaker's information, presentation abstract and resource links, soon! Event Location: HENN 318