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What did the Big Bang sound like? Can gravitational waves let us explore the first moments of the Universe, long before light could travel freely through space? Join us for a lecture by Caltech physics professor Dr. Rana Adhikari as he explores how gravitational waves might reveal the earliest history of our Universe and the mysteries that remain in modern cosmology. This presentation will be followed by a panel Q&A consisting of several astrophysicists to answer your questions about astronomy, cosmology, and space.This public astronomy event will be hosted both in-person as well as live-streamed over YouTube Live. The lecture will be 30 minutes, followed by a 90-minute session of telescope-aided stargazing and a Q&A Panel consisting of experts in the department on a variety of astronomy and astrophysical topics. You can attend in person or interact with us through the YouTube interface. Event is free and open to all, no reservations necessary.
For more information including a link to the YouTube Livestream and directions to Caltech, click on the poster image or visit our webpage: http://outreach.astro.caltech.edu
Title: What Did the Big Bang Sound Like?
Lecture: Rana Adhikari
Abstract:
Almost a hundred years ago, astronomers on Mount Wilson, up the hill from Altadena, discovered that the universe is expanding. Albert Einstein didn't believe it at first. Trace that expansion backward and you arrive at the Big Bang, whose faint afterglow still fills the sky. But that light only takes us back so far: for its first 380,000 years, the universe was a glowing fog that no telescope can see through. To look earlier, we may need to listen instead, for gravitational waves, the ripples in space and time that Einstein predicted and Caltech’s LIGO first detected in 2015. Come hear how we might catch the faint echo of the universe's first moments. Along the way, we'll explore how gravity bends time, why your head ages faster than your feet, and why, years after many thought cosmology was "solved," it remains full of mysteries: What are dark matter and dark energy? And why does space have three dimensions?
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Event venue
1216 E California Blvd, Pasadena, CA, United States, California 91125
Tickets
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