Astronomy Talk: Asteroids Headed for Earth | Los Altos Hills

Submitted by the Event Organizer

Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series | Los Altos

Founded in 1999, the Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series lectures are presented on six Wednesday evenings during each school year at Foothill College. Speakers over the years have included Nobel-prize winners, members of the National Academy of Sciences and many other well-known scientists explaining astronomical developments in everyday language.

The series, moderated by Foothill College Astronomy instructor Andrew Fraknoi, is sponsored by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, the SETI Institute, NASA’s Ames Research Center and Foothill College. Topics range from the exploration of the planets to the speeding up of the expanding universe; from planets around other stars to black holes at the centers of distant galaxies.

Admission is free and the public is invited. Seating is first come, first served. Arrive early to locate parking.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series | Los Altos

As part of the 15th annual Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series, former NASA Astronaut Edward Tsang “Ed” Lu, Ph.D., and CEO of the Sentinel Mission, will discuss The Sentinel Mission: Finding the Asteroid Headed for Earth, an illustrated, non-technical lecture in the Smithwick Theatre at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills at 7 pm on Wednesday, March 4, 2015.

Asteroids, which hit our planet at least twice each year, are the only natural disaster for which we have a technological solution. We are all living with the threat of a three-minute experience that could transform our lives and our planet forever.

Scientists have found 10,000 Near-Earth Objects, yet there are an estimated one million in our inner solar system, and the vast majority of the threatening ones are still undiscovered. In this non-technical talk, Dr. Lu will describe the threat, and discuss the Sentinel Mission, an orbiting telescope to detect and track asteroids that cross Earth’s orbit.

Admission is free, but if you’re parking on campus, you must purchase a parking permit for $3 from dispensers in student parking lots. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.

Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.