Science for the Public: Contemporary Science Issues and Innovations
August 28, 2020 zoom recording by Belmont Media Center, Belmont MA

Paul Martini, Ph.D., Professor of Astronomy, Ohio State University; and 2020-2021 William Bentinck-Smith Fellow, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Research.

The universe has been expanding since its beginning, but astronomers today are questioning the expansion rate (the Hubble constant). Dr. Martini discusses the possible source of the acceleration, the importance of quasars in calculating the expansion rate, and the sophisticated instruments that measure it. He is the Instrument Scientist for the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). The DESI will produce a five-year survey of more than 35 million galaxies and quasars to better understand the nature of cosmic acceleration. Dr. Martini will also explain his extensive work on the evolution of galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGN)

(Radcliff article about Paul Martini) Big Questions Led Paul Martini to a Life Among the Stars