The University of Colorado at Boulder physics department will kick off a new monthly science program on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 2 p.m. in the JILA Auditorium.
Senior Instructor Michael Dubson of the physics department will present "Big Telescopes, Spy Satellites and Video Astronomy" as the first lecture in the new program called Saturday Science Series.
The monthly shows will present topics similar to the popular CU Wizards series, except that the new series is targeting Colorado high school students, teachers and adults with afternoon lectures.
During his presentation, Dubson will use video clips to show the audience what planets and stars look like when viewed through a high-quality telescope. He also will explain how telescopes work and talk about the history of American spy satellites, including information that was recently declassified.
"I want people to have an appreciation of why we build really giant telescopes, and what fabulous instruments they are," Dubson said.
The new series is supported by an outreach grant from the Division of Continuing Education at CU-Boulder.
The remaining 2002-03 Saturday Physics Series includes:
Nov. 9, 2 p.m., Duane Physics room G1B20, Associate Professor Steven Pollock of physics, "Making the Invisible Visible."
Dec. 7, 2 p.m., Duane Physics room G1B20, Professor Emeritus Albert Bartlett of physics, "Arithmetic, Population and Energy."
Jan. 11, 2 p.m., Duane Physics room G1B20, Professor Patricia Rankin of physics, "Time Traveling with Physics."
Feb. 8, 2 p.m., Duane Physics room G1B20, Professors Margaret Murnane and Henry Kapteyn of physics, "Lasers and Light."
March 8, 2 p.m., JILA Auditorium, Professor Allan Franklin of physics, "The Road to the Neutrino."
April 12, 2 p.m., Duane Physics room G1B20, Professor Neil Ashby of physics, "Global Positioning Systems."
For more information, including directions to the JILA Auditorium, call (303) 492-6952.