Astronomical Suggestions
Let's shed light on the Universe 12 March – 14 May
Astrophysics is a particular science: you cannot take a star and put it on a laboratory table.
The “Trying and trying again” of Galilean memory is not applicable to the universe. Scientists had to find another way to study stars, planets and galaxies: they used light, discovering a fascinating world that is often “invisible” to our eyes.
In collaboration with Fabio Peri
The Treasure of the Rainbow
- Tuesday 12 March 2024 at 21:00 - 22:30
Nothing but light comes to us from the sky and the stars, but how much information does a ray of light bring! However, we must look for them carefully, breaking down the light into all its colours, that is, analysing its "rainbow"- in technical terms its "spectrum". It was spectroscopy that allowed us to measure the temperature of stars and their chemical composition. Spectroscopy also helped us discover the expansion of the universe. The spectrum of a star can even reveal whether planets, perhaps similar to Earth, revolve around it. The rainbow truly is a treasure, which astrophysicists are gradually discovering and sharing with everyone.
The Secrets of Light
- Tuesday 14 May 2024 at 21:00 - 22:30
Light has a very interesting story to tell: What is light? What is it made of? What are colours? With Einstein's theory of special relativity, its extraordinary speed of 300,000 km/sec became a universal constant, an insurmountable limit. Electromagnetic waves gave us radio, television and cell phones. However, quantum mechanics has cast doubt on whether light is really a wave: perhaps it is made up of corpuscles. Indeed, it seems to be a wave and a corpuscle at the same time, as are all particles. Light does not respect the rules, which is why it is fascinating and revolutionary. Its secrets have been revealed, at least in part, and have changed physics.
All the Colours of…the Dark!
- Tuesday 16 April 2024 at 21:00 - 22:30
Light has many more "colours" than our eyes can perceive. We know about ultraviolet rays, which we protect ourselves from in the summer, infrared rays, which is the heat that our bodies give off, but radio waves, X-rays and gamma rays are also "colours" of light. Each of these colours opens a different window from which to observe the universe and discover bizarre objects such as quasars and black holes. We will really be able to see all the colours!
