WCA Astronomy Series - Gravitational Lensing: A Tool to Study the Universe

Event Description

Four fifths of the matter in our Universe is "dark matter", a mysterious substance that is completely invisible. However, we can detect this matter using gravitational lensing -- the gravitational fields produced by dark matter can bend, distort and magnify the light produced by other objects, like a giant magnifying glass. At this month's KPL astronomy talk, Jordan Ducatel will share some of the amazing impacts dark matter has on light, and how astronomers are using this to map out the dark matter in our Universe.

Jordan Ducatel is a graduate student in the Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics at the University of Waterloo, who works on using gravitational lensing to measure the amount of dark matter in nearby galaxies. In particular, he studies ultra-diffuse galaxies -- extremely faint structures which contain far fewer stars than other galaxies.

For questions about this program, you can email joseph.brannan@kpl.org

Notes & Requirements

The WCA-KPL Astronomy Talk series takes place on the last Wednesday of each month, and is jointly organized by the Waterloo Centre for Astrophysics and KPL. Learn more about the WCA at: uwaterloo.ca/astrophysics-centre The opinions of guest speakers do not necessarily reflect the values and mission of Kitchener Public Library. We champion the right for ideas to be heard and words expressed without censorship. Intellectual freedom is a fundamental right.