Phil Plait, whose Twitter handle is Bad Astronomer, will speak about the Mars Curiosity mission in a free public lecture at the University of Alberta on Saturday, May 3, 2014 at 3pm in CCIS 1-430.
Plait is an American astronomer, skeptic, writer and popular science blogger. Plait has worked as part of the Hubble Space Telescope team, images and spectra of astronomical objects, as well as engaging in public outreach advocacy for NASA missions.
In 1998, Plait started "Bad Astronomy," a website devoted to addressing misconceptions of astronomy and space science. Bad Astronomy now runs as a blog in Slate magazine, where Plait has found a large general audience.
In Saturday's talk, Plait will talk about human curiosity and how it's led to the Mars Curiosity mission. The abstract reads:
"Humans have been curious about the Universe since we were capable of looking up. But we've only been able to travel to and explore other worlds for a few decades. In that time we've learned a lot, but there's so much left to discover... which is why we send rovers to Mars. These mobile labs are extensions of our eyes and hands, testing the Red Planet's surface to see what it's like and what it once was... and whether it could have ever supported life. In this talk, you'll find out just where our Curiosity has taken us."
This event is presented by the Royal Society of Canada - Edmonton Centre and sponsored by the Faculty of Science. In addition, the Department of Physics will open the Observatory on the 5th floor of CCIS for solar viewing from 12 noon to 1pm.
Plait's talk is free, but you must book a ticket through Eventbrite. Tickets are going fast.