NRF|SAAO Cape Town Open Night
June 14 @ 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
The NRF|SAAO Open Nights in Cape Town take place on the second and fourth Saturday of every month.
All Open Nights will start with a presentation on topics of astronomy or related science fields. Visitors will then be given an introduction to the history of the Observatory, library, museum, and the 120 year-old McClean telescope. If the weather permits, stargazing will take place with McClean and smaller telescopes.
Please note that guests are only allowed entry into our premises from 7:30pm.
Free entry for kids aged 6 & under.
Please email cptbookings@saao.ac.za or call +27 21 447 0025 if you have any queries regarding bookings.
Speaker: Mikhail de Villiers
Mikhail de Villiers is a PhD student at the University of Cape Town and with SAAO. He completed his undergraduate degree in Astrophysics and Mathematics after which he pursued a BSc Honours degree specialising in Astrophysics and Space Science. This
spurred him on to complete a Masters degree in Astrophysics. He is now working under the supervision of Dr Moses Mogotsi and Prof DJ Pisano.
His thesis is currently titled ‘Investigating the presence of extraplanar gas in different galaxy environments’ , where he is conducting a detailed analysis of nearby galaxies by using state of the art observations of neutral atomic hydrogen with MeerKAT. His thesis aims to study and understand the nature of extraplanar and diffuse gas in galaxies which could shed new light on our understanding of the flow of gas in and around galaxies.
Abstract:
Mikhail will take you on a captivating journey speaking about the spectacular science of spectroscopy. Spectroscopy is the science studying the interaction between light and matter. This talk will encompass its basic principles and extend to its wide applications
such as uncovering secrets about stellar evolution, identifying exoplanet atmospheres and how it can paint a vivid picture of the early universe.