AAAP thanks all our speakers for their interesting talks.



 

2022 - 2023 Season



                                 2022 - 2023  Speaker Topic
         
                                
June 13, 2023

Dr. Jacob Hamer,
Assistant Curator, Planetarium Educator, NJ State Museum

60 Years of Discoveries with the Arecibo Observatory



                                
May 9, 2023

Alain Maury, Hybrid,
Asteroid Discoverer, Observatory Operator and Guide

The Hunt for Near Earth Asteroids



                                
April 11, 2023

Ira Polans, Hybrid,
Former Program Chair AAAP

The Sun Dagger: Chaco Canyon And The Anasazi (Film)



                                
March 14, 2023

Joseph DePasquale, Hybrid,
Senior Science Visuals Developer, Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

Unfolding the Infrared Universe with the James Webb Space Telescope



                                
Feb 14, 2023

John C. Church, Hybrid,
Retired Research Scientist, Long Time AAAP Member

Cosmic Clockwork: Occultations, Eclipses, and Transits



                                
Jan 10, 2023

Alyssa Pagan, Hybrid,
Science Visuals Developer, Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

The Art and Science of Visualizing Webb Imagery



                                
Dec 13, 2022

Joshua Winn, Hybrid,
Professor of Astrophysical Sciences and Director of Graduate Studies at Princeton University

Exoplanets: Science and Science Fiction



                                
Nov 8, 2022

Michael Strauss, Hybrid,
Professor and Chair, Department of Astrophysics, Princeton University

The First Black Holes in the Universe: Searching for the Highest-Redshift Quasars



                                
Oct 11, 2022

Avi Loeb, online via Zoom,
Harvard University

The Galileo Project: In Search of Technological Interstellar Objects





 

2021 - 2022 Season



                                 2021 - 2022 Speaker Topic
         
                                
September 13, 2022

Michael DiMario, PhD
Founder and CEO, Astrum Systems

Pluto Precovery and the Resurrection of Yerkes Observatory



                                

Lisa Ann Fanning
amateur Astronomer

Astronomical Events and Bird Behavior



                                
June 14, 2022

Bill Murray
State Planetarium

Touch the Stars



                                
May 10, 2022

Robert J. Vanderbei, online via Zoom,
Princeton University

Welcome to the Universe in 3D



                                
April 12, 2022

Dr. Paul Daniels, online via Zoom,
FRAS President, Federation of Astronomical Societies

The Mega-Constellation Threat



                                
March 08, 2022

Dr. Roseanne Di Stefano, online via Zoom,
Senior Astrophysicist at the Center for Astrophysics, Harvard and Smithsonian.

Planets in External Galaxies



                                
February 08, 2022

Dr. Christopher Spalding, online via Zoom,
51 Pegasi b Postdoctoral Fellow in Princeton University’s Department of Astrophysical Sciences.

Upside-down, Inside-out Solar Systems



                                
January 11, 2022

Dr. Robert Williams, online via Zoom,
Astronomer Emeritus at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI).

Observing Galaxy Formation with the Hubble Space Telescope



                                
December 14, 2021

Dr. Joleen Carlberg, online via Zoom,
STIS Branch Manager at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

The Fiery Fate of Exoplanets



                                
November 9, 2021

Dr. Jesus Rivera, online via Zoom,
Visiting Assistant Professor of Astronomy at Swarthmore College

Beyond the Visible Universe



                                
October 12, 2021

Dr. Tansu Daylan, online via Zoom,
Postdoctoral Associate, Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University

Exoplanets Transiting Faint Stars in the TESS Full Frame Images



                                
September 14, 2021

Prof. Emily Levesque, online via Zoom,
Professor at University of Washington

The Last Stargazers



                                
May 11, 2021

Dr. Alexander Hayes, online via Zoom,
Associate Professor in the Department of Astronomy at Cornell University and Director of the Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science.

Ocean Worlds of the Outer Solar System



                                
April 13, 2021

Dr. Alexandra Krull Davatzes, online via Zoom,
Associate Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Temple University

Precambrian Meteor Impacts and Implications for Early Earth



                                
March 9, 2021

Dr. Keivan Stassun, online via Zoom,
Professor of Astrophysics at Vanderbilt University

The Royal Road: Eclipses and Transits in the Era of Gaia and TESS



                                
February 9, 2021

Dr. Guðmundur Kári Stefánsson, online via Zoom,
Princeton University Postdoc

Searching for New Worlds with Next-generation Astronomical Instruments



                                
January 12, 2021

Dr. John Church, online via Zoom,
Member AAAP, Author, Chemist

The Fourth Condition: A Spyglass Drama





 

2019 - 2020 Season



                                 2019 - 2020 Speaker Topic
         
                                
December 8, 2020

Dr. Kimberly Arcand, online via Zoom,
Visualization and Emerging Technology Lead for NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory

Two Decades Plus with NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory



                                
November 10, 2020

 Nick Kanas, MD, online via Zoom,
 Amateur astronomer

Celestial Mapping and the Modern Amateur Astronomer



                                
October 13, 2020

 Dr. Alexander R. Jones online via Zoom,
 NYU

The Antikythera Mechanism and Ancient Greek Astronomy



                                
September 8, 2020

 Dr. Adam Burrows online via Zoom,
 Princeton University

Core-Collapse Supernova Theory



                                
June 9, 2020

 William Murray online via Zoom,
 Club member and Planetarium host

How the Stars Got Their Names



                                
May 12, 2020

 Robert Vanderbei online via Zoom,
 Princeton University Professor

Astro Dynamics



                                
April 14, 2020

 Canceled due to Covid-19




                                
March 10, 2020

 Canceled due to Covid-19
 




                                
February 11, 2020

 David J. McComas,
 Princeton University Vice President for the
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) and Professor of Astrophysical Sciences.

Parker Solar Probe’s Historic First Passages by the Sun



                                
January 14, 2020

 Dr. Bin Chen,
 Associate Professor of Physics at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Eyeing the Sun: Our Nearest Star



                                
December 10, 2019

 Patrick Crumley,
 Postdoctoral Research Associate, Princeton University

Gamma-ray Bursts: Unraveling the mystery of the universe’s brightest explosions



                                
November 12, 2019

 Joshua Winn,
 Professor, Princeton University.

The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite



                                
October 8, 2019

 John Church,
 Chemist and AAAP member

When Ireland Was the Center of the Universe



                                
September 10, 2019

 Rachel Beaton,
 Research Fellow, Princeton University

Engineering the Measurement of the Hubble Constant



                                 2018 - 2019 Speaker Topic
         
                                
June 11, 2019

 William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium

Annual Member's Planetarium Show
                                
May 14, 2019

 James Lee Chen
Author

On his book How to Find the Apollo Landing Sites.
                                
April 09, 2019

 Gino Segre and Bettina Hoerlin

On their book THE POPE OF PHYSICS: Enrico Fermi and the Birth of the Atomic Age.
                                
March 12, 2019

 Scott Tremaine
 Institute for Advanced Study

Pluto, Sedna, Planet X, the Oort cloud, and Oumuamua: a report on the outer fringes of the solar system.
                                
February 12, 2019

 Meeting Canceled

Speaker Unavailability
                                
January 8, 2019

 Frank Reed

“Celestial Navigation: History and Future”
                                
December 8, 2018

 Meeting Canceled

Speaker Unavailability
                                
November 13, 2018

 Bob Simcoe
 Harvard University

“DASCH (Digital Access to a Sky Century @Harvard”
                                
October 9, 2018

 Dr. Jack Hughes
 Rutgers University

“Stellar Nucleosynthesis”
                                
September 11, 2018

 Robert Vanderbei
 Princeton University

“Spectroscopy for the Amateur Astrophotographer”










 

2017 - 2018 Season



    2017 - 2018 Speaker Topic
         
                                
June 13, 2018

 William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium

Annual Member's Planetarium Show
                                
May 8, 2018

  Dr. James Lowenthal
 Smith College

“Stalking the most luminous galaxies in the Universe with Hubble and the Large Millimeter Telescope”
                                
April 10, 2018

  Frans Pretorius
 Princeton University

“LIGO and the Extreme Side of Gravity”
                                
March 13, 2018

  Ed Turner
 Princeton University

“The Breakthrough Starshot Initiative: A “Funded” Interstellar Flight Project”
                                
February 13, 2018

  Paul Halpern

“The Quantum Labyrinth: How Richard Feynman and John Wheeler Revolutionized Time and Reality”
                                
January 9, 2018

  Michael D. Lemonick

“The Georgian Star: How William and Caroline Herschel Revolutionized Our Understanding of the Cosmos”
                                
December 12, 2017

  William Murray

“The Life and Legacy of Charles Messier”
                                
November 14, 2017

  James Chen

“Astronomy for Older Eyes”
                                
October 10, 2017

  Arshad Jilani & Rex A Parker

“The AAAP’s 2017 Total Solar Eclipse Trip to Monmouth, OR” & "Astro-Imaging with Skynet”
                                
September 12, 2017

 Dr. Josh Winn
 Princeton University

“Strange New Worlds” of exoplanets




 

2016 - 2017 Season



    2016 - 2017 Speaker Topic
         
                                
June 13, 2017

 William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium

Annual Member's Planetarium Show
                                
May 9, 2017

 Dr. Andrew Baker
 Rutgers University

Dense Gas in Distant Dusty Galaxies
                                
April 11, 2017

 Dava Sobel
 Author of "Longitude"

Latest book "The Glass Universe"
                                
March 14, 2017

 Meeting canceled
 Stormy weather

Heavy rains and thunder storms.
                                
February 14, 2017

 Meeting canceled
 Valentine's Day

To avoid explosions at home.
                                
January 10, 2017

 Dr. Ondrej Pejcha,
 Department of Astrophysical Sciences,  Princeton University

Explosions in the sky
          
                     

December 13, 2016

 Dr. Eric Gawisere,
 Associate Professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy,
 Rutgers Univ.

The Other 95%: Revealing the Dark Universe
          
                     

November 8, 2016

 Dr. James Stone,
 Chair of Dept. of Astrophysical Sciences,  Princeton Univ.

From accreting black holes to merging galaxies: using computers to study astrophysics
          
                     

October 11, 2016

 Dr. Steven K. Korotky,
 Senior Research Scientist at Bell  Laboratories

Restoration of the 6-1/2 Inch Prin Telescope of the Daniel S. Schanck Observatory
          
                     

eptember 13, 2016

 Dr. Jia Liu,
 Princeton University Postdoctoral Fellow

Neutrinos: Their discovery, detection, and future prospects




 

2015 - 2016 Season



    2015 - 2016 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 14, 2016  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 10, 2016

 J. Richard Gott,
 Professor of Astrophysical Sciences,
 Princeton University

The Cosmic Web - Mysterious Architecture of the Universe
            
                          

April 12, 2016

 James L. Green,
 Director Planetary Science,  NASA

New Discoveries in the Outer Solar System: Ceres, Pluto and Planet X
            
                          

March 8, 2016

 Prof. Neta A. Bahcall,
 Eugene Higgins Professor of Astrophysics,  Princeton University

The Dark Side of the Universe
            
                          

February 9, 2016

 David Gaynes,
 Award-winning Filmmaker

Saving Hubble
            
                          

January 12, 2016

 Frank O'Brien,
 Database Administrator

Navigating to the Moon: a View from the Apollo Guidance Computer
            
                          

December 8, 2015

 Rex Parker,
 Director, AAAP

Tour of USNO and Smithsonian Air and Space, Washington
            
                          

November 10, 2015

 Paul Halpern,
 Professor of Physics
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia & author

Albert Einstein and Erwin Schrodinger:
From Seeking Unity in the Cosmos to Battling in the Press
            
                          

October 13, 2015

 Scott Nammacher,
 Amateur Astronomer

Observatory Design and Astrophotography: One Person’s Approach
            
                          

September 8, 2015

 Dr. Paul Witta,
 TCNJ Physics Department Chair

Measuring and Modeling Variability in Quasars and Blazars




 

2014 - 2015 Season



    2014 - 2015 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 9, 2015  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 12, 2015

 Tim Morton,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

The Astronishing Diversity of Planets
            
                          

April 14, 2015

 Luke Hovey,
 PhD Candidate, Rutgers University

Supernovae Remnants
            
                          

March 10, 2015

 Andy Golding,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Supermassive Black Holes
            
                          

February 10, 2015

 Gene Ramsey,
 AAAP Observatory Co-Chair

Twenty Years of Astronomy Tips and Tricks
            
                          

January 13, 2015

 Alan Hirschfeld,
 University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth

From Backyard to Mountaintop:
The Adventures of History's Best Worst Telescope
            
                          

December 9, 2014

 Vera Gluscevic,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

 
            
                          

November 12, 2014

 Steve Mazlin,
 Astrophotographer

Fourth Dimensional Astroimaging
            
                          

October 14, 2014

 Ken Kremer,
 NASA Ambassador

The Future of America’s Human Spaceflight Program
            
                          

September 9, 2014

 Aram Friedman,
 Ansible Technologies

Digital Planetarium and the 2012 Transit of Venus from Hawaii






 

2013 - 2014 Season



    2013 - 2014 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 9, 2015  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 14, 2014

 Neta Bahcall,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

The Dark Matter
            
                          

April 8, 2014

 Ken Kremer, Gene Ramsey
 and Robert Vanderbei

Wallops Flight Facility, Sky Safari, Snowflake Macrophotography
            
                          

March 11, 2014

 Ted Blank,
 International Occultation Timing Association

Chasing Shadows for Planetary Science
            
                          

February 11, 2014

 Craig Wheeler,
 University of Texas at Austin

Type IA Supernovae
            
                          

January 14, 2014

 Derrick Piits,
 Joel N. Bloom Observatory, Dartmouth

Franklin Institute TMT and the Galileoscope
            
                          

December 10, 2013

 No Meeting

 
            
                          

November 12, 2013

 Rex Parker,
 AAAP

Galaxies, Comets, and Pixels from the High Desert
            
                          

October 8, 2013

 Ken Kremer,
 NASA Ambassador

NASA’s LADEE and Cygnus Blast Off from Virginia
            
                          

September 10, 2013

 Clayton Myers,
 Princeton Plasma Physics Lab

The Quest to Understand the Sun and the Space Weather It Produces






 

2012 - 2013 Season



    2012 - 2013 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 11, 2013  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 11, 2013

 J. Richard Gott, David Spergel,
  Lisa Kaltenegger, Freeman Dyson

50th Anniversary Celebration Panel - Is Anyone Else Out There?
            
                          

April 9, 2013

 Michael Lemonick,
 Author

Mirror Earths
            
                          

March 12, 2013

 Rachel Somerville,
 Rutgers Physics & Astronomy Dept.

The Intertwined Lives of Galaxies and Their Supermassive Black Holes
            
                          

February 4, 2013

 James Green,
 Director of Planetary Science, NASA

The Revolution in Planetary Science
            
                          

January 8, 2013

 Jenny Green,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Tiny but Powerful: the Smallest Supermassive Black Holes
            
                          

December 11, 2012

 Ken Kremer,
 NASA Ambassador

Curiosity and the Search for Life on Mars in 3D
            
                          

November 13, 2012

 Renee Hlozak,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Modern Cosmology and the BuildingBlocks of the Universe
            
                          

October 9, 2012

 Rashid Sunyaev,
 Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics

Sunyaev–Zel’dovich Thermal Effect
            
                          

September 12, 2012

 David Spergel,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Illuminating the Evolution of the Universe




 

2011 - 2012 Season



    2011 - 2012 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 8, 2012  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 10, 2012

 Mario Livio,
 Hubble Space Science Institute

Acheivements of the Hubble Space Telescope
            
                          

April 11, 2012

 Greg Matloff,
 NY City College of Technology

Biosphere Extension
            
                          

March 14, 2012

 Mark Trodden,
 University of Pennsylvania

Modern Cosmology and the BuildingBlocks of the Universe
            
                          

February 14, 2012

 Paul Steinhardt,
 Institute for Advanced Study

Inflationary Cosmology on Trial
            
                          

January 11, 2012

 Michael Shara,
 Columbia University

Novae and Type IA Supernovae
            
                          

December 13, 2011

 Gaspar Bakos,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Hungarian Automated Telescope Network
            
                          

November 8, 2011

 Ken Kremer,
 NASA Ambassador

Atlantis, The End of America’s Shuttle Program and What’s Beyond for NASA
            
                          

October 12, 2011

 Freeman Dyson,
 Institute for Advanced Study

The Search for Life in the Solar System
            
                          

September 14, 2011

 Jill Knapp,
 Princeton Astrophysics Department

Cosmology






 

2010 - 2011 Season



    2010 - 2011 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 14, 2011  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 10, 2011

 Khee-Gan Lee,
 Princeton University

Quasars and the Lyman-alpha Forest: A Look into the Cosmic Boom town
            
                          

April 12, 2011

 Michael Molnar

The Star Of Bethlehem
            
                          

March 8, 2011

 Tim Brandt,
 Princeton University

Type Ia Supernovae and the Search for Their Progenitors
            
                          

February 8, 2014

 Fronefield Crawford III,
 Franklin & Marshall College

New Searches for Old Pulsars
            
                          

January 11, 2011

 Snow cancellation

 
            
                          

December 14, 2010

 Bob Vanderbei & J. Richard Gott
 Princeton University

 New Book - "Sizing Up The Universe"
            
                          

November 9, 2010

 Jerry Lodriguss,
 Astrophotographer

Secrets of DSLR Astrophotography
            
                          

October 12, 2010

 Suzanne Staggs,
 Princeton University

Cosmology and the Microwave Background
            
                          

September 14, 2010

 Clayton Myers,
 Princeton Plasma Physics Lab

The Quest to Understand the Sun and the Space Weather It Produces






 

2009 - 2010 Season



    2009 - 2010 Speaker Topic
         
                                        June 14, 2011  William Murray,
 NJ State Museum Planetarium
Annual Member's Planetarium Show
            
                          

May 10, 2011

 Khee-Gan Lee,
 Princeton University

Quasars and the Lyman-alpha Forest: A Look into the Cosmic Boom town
            
                          

April 12, 2011

 Michael Molnar

The Star Of Bethlehem
            
                          

March 8, 2011

 Tim Brandt,
 Princeton University

Type Ia Supernovae and the Search for Their Progenitors
            
                          

February 8, 2014

 Fronefield Crawford III,
 Franklin & Marshall College

New Searches for Old Pulsars
            
                          

January 11, 2011

 Snow cancellation

 
            
                          

December 14, 2010

 Bob Vanderbei & J. Richard Gott
 Princeton University

 New Book - "Sizing Up The Universe"
            
                          

November 9, 2010

 Jerry Lodriguss,
 Astrophotographer

Secrets of DSLR Astrophotography
            
                          

October 12, 2010

 Suzanne Staggs,
 Princeton University

Cosmology and the Microwave Background
            
                          

September 10, 2013

 Clayton Myers,
 Princeton Plasma Physics Lab

The Quest to Understand the Sun and the Space Weather It Produces


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