TAMIU LBV Planetarium Hosts Top Astronomer for Saturday Lectures

How old is the universe? What’s “dark energy?”

Come find out at Texas A&M International University’s Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium as it hosts, “The Age of the Universe and Dark Energy” by world-recognized astronomer Lucas Macri on Saturday, Sept. 29.            

Presentations will be held in Spanish at 6:30 p.m. and in English at 7:30 p.m. in the Lamar Bruni Vergara Science Center and Planetarium, room 102.

A star gazing party will follow at 8:30 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. for a Planetarium Open House. The event is free and open to the public and participants are encouraged to bring a telescope for the star party.

Dr. Macri, assistant professor of physics and astronomy and member of Texas A&M University’s Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, was part of an international group of astronomers who unveiled the most complete 3-D map of the local universe to worldwide attention in 2011.

He will discuss the astronomical techniques used to answer questions on the universe’s age, dark energy and how the Hubble Space Telescope allows us to measure distances over 30 galaxies.

Macri’s ongoing and planned projects to further improve measurement of the age of the universe and properties of dark energy, a mysterious component of the universe that’s accelerating its expansion, are also part of the presentation.

Planetarium director Gerardo Pérez said that the Planetarium is excited to host the first presentation of this kind in Spanish.

“We’d like to welcome both Spanish and English speakers to our facilities and take part in a rare presentation that aims to unravel answers to questions we often have about our universe as we gaze into the night sky,” he said.

Dr. Macri, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, holds a Ph.D. in astronomy from Harvard University and a bachelor of science in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Prior to joining TAMU, he served as a post-doctoral Hubble Fellow and Goldberg Fellow at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory in Arizona. His research focuses on the extragalactic distance scale, resolved stellar populations and near-field cosmology.

For more information, please contact Pérez at 326.2606, e-mail gapaerez@tamiu.edu or visit offices located in gaperez@tamiu.edu

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Relations, Marketing and Information Services at prmis@tamiu.edu