Speakers: Associate Professor Holger Baumgardt and Professor Tim Ralph
Affiliation: University of Queensland
Abstract
The 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics was jointly awarded to Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez for the discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity and the proof-of-existence of a supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy. In this year’s Nobel Prize in Physics colloquium, Holger Baumgardt will present the science highlights from the 30 year long study of the motion of stars in the centre of our galaxy done by Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez using some of the world’s largest telescopes in Chile and Hawaii. Tim Ralph will summarise the long-standing theoretical controversy over the existence (or not) of black holes and how Roger Penrose settled the issue.
Note: This colloquium is intended for an audience with some knowledge of physics, and will be accessible to any undergraduate physics student.
About Physics colloquium
The Physics Colloquium series hosts a range of speakers from Australia and abroad. The series explores a variety of topics and everyone is welcome to come along. The seminars are open so there is no need to register your attendance.
