UC Davis TERC: A visit from the Vatican astronomer

UC Davis TERC is having two special events on August 10. They are hosting a special presentation in Tahoe City by the "Pope's Astronomer." Brother Guy Consolmagno, director of the Vatican Observatory, will present Deep Waters to Deep Space: Father Angelo Secchi’s Amazing 19th Century Science. Prior to the Brother's presentation, there will be poster presentations by 2023 summer undergraduate interns who will discuss the research they have undertaken at Tahoe this summer.

Most people know the name “Secchi” in reference to the Secchi disk used to measure lake clarity. Despite its development by the founder of the Vatican Observatory, Father Angelo Secchi, over 158 years ago, the Secchi disk remains a global standard for measuring water clarity.

Join Brother Guy Consolmagno, American research astronomer, physicist, religious brother, director of the Vatican Observatory, and President of the Vatican Observatory Foundation, to discover the story behind inventor Angelo Secchi.

Father Angelo Secchi was a pioneer in astronomical spectroscopy and was one of the first scientists to state authoritatively that the Sun is a star. He invented the heliospectrograph, star spectrograph, and telespectroscope and developed the first system of stellar classification fundamental to the study of astrophysics. In addition to astronomy, Secchi was active in oceanography, meteorology, and physics.

Br. Guy’s research is centered on the connections between meteorites and asteroids and the origin and evolution of small bodies in the Solar System. In addition to over 40 refereed scientific papers, he has co-authored several books on astronomy for the popular market.

Immediately prior to the lecture, there will be a cocktail reception and poster presentations by graduating 2023 summer undergraduate interns who will discuss the research they have undertaken at Tahoe this summer.

Doors open at 4 p.m. for the student intern poster session, cocktails and appetizers, and to meet Brother Guy. The presentation begins at 6 p.m.

Admission is $10 and free for students with a student ID. Appetizers and a no-host bar will be available from 4:30 - 6 p.m. The lecture will begin at 6 p.m. in the Mountain conference room at Granlibakken Tahoe, 725 Granlibakken Road, Tahoe City.

The presentation will be simultaneously webcast live. Join us remotely at 6 p.m. on Thursday, August 10 by clicking on the following link to stream this lecture from your personal device: https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/92024189848

For more information call 775-881-7560 or visit http://tahoe.ucdavis.edu/events/.