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astronomy

# Episode Title Description People Date
1 Possible sources for the gravitational wave background Dr Yonadav Barry Ginat - Possible sources for the gravitational wave background Yonadav Barry Ginat 28 Nov 2023
2 Why be a Lunatic Dr Maggie Adarin-Pocock delivers the 2019 Simonyi Lecture at the Oxford Playhouse Maggie Adarin-Pocock 19 Dec 2019
3 Creative Commons Particles in space Join Dr Donal Hill for a tour of the invisible, as he describes how particle detectors measure 3D information to help uncover the secrets of tiny fundamental particles. Donal Hill 12 Jun 2019
4 The oldest light in the Universe In this short stargazing talk, Luke Jew looks at the topic - The oldest light in the Universe. Luke Jew 05 Apr 2019
5 Thinking 3D: Byrne-Bussey Marconi Lecture Thinking 3D is an interdisciplinary exploration of the concept of three-dimensionality and its impact on the arts and sciences, co-investigated by Dr Laura Moretti and Daryl Green. Laura Moretti, Daryl Green 05 Apr 2019
6 How do we find planets around other stars? The 3rd Wetton lecture, 19th June 2018 delivered by Professor David W. Hogg, Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, New York University David W Hogg 02 Jul 2018
7 Evidence in the Multiverse Erik Curiel and Simon Friederich hash out the problems we encounter when we look for evidence of a multiverse. Erik Curiel, Simon Friederich 24 Apr 2018
8 The Hard Fact of Life in Big Physics City How similar is the fine-tuning of our universe to probabilistic reasoning we use and understand? Simon Friederich and Erik Curiel go through a series of examples. Erik Curiel, Simon Friederich 24 Apr 2018
9 Problems with Probability Simon Friederich and Erik Curiel discuss the problems fine-tuning arguments raise for our understanding of probability. Simon Friederich, Erik Curiel 24 Apr 2018
10 ALMA and the Birth of Stars Across Galaxies The 2018 Astor Visiting Lecture 14th March 2018 delivered by Professor Adam Leroy, Ohio State University. Adam Leroy 28 Mar 2018
11 Rushing Robots and Tons of Glass: Building the WEAVE Spectrograph Ellen Schallig gives a short talk on building the WEAVE spectograph. Ellen Schallig 21 Feb 2018
12 Quasars: Are They As Cool As They Sound? In this flash talk, Josie Peters presents on the topic of quasars. Josie Peters 21 Feb 2018
13 The Big Bang and a Multiverse Darsh Kodwani gives a short talk on The Big bang and a multiverse. Darsh Kodwani 21 Feb 2018
14 I'm Spinning Around: Watching Galaxies Rotate (Or Not) Mark Graham gives a short talk on the rotation of galaxies. Mark Graham 21 Feb 2018
15 It's a Star's Life In this short talk, Rebecca Esselstein gives an overview of a typical star's lifespan. Rebecca Esselstein 21 Feb 2018
16 Galactic Archaeology: Mining Stellar Fossils in the Milky Way Halo Payel Das gives a short talk on mining stellar fossils in the Milky Way halo. Payel Das 21 Feb 2018
17 Weighing Black Holes Oxford astrophysicist Martin Bureau gives a talk on black holes. Martin Bureau 21 Feb 2018
18 Taking Real Photos of Planets Outside the Solar System Jean-Loup Baudino gives a short talk on planets outside the solar system. Jean-Loup Baudino 21 Feb 2018
19 Observation of the mergers of binary black holes: The opening of gravitational wave astronomy The 2017 Halley Lecture 7th June 2017 delivered by Professor Rainer Weiss, MIT on behalf of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration Rainer Weiss 27 Jun 2017
20 Inflation in the Future What should we expect to learn in the future? In the fourth part of their chat, Dave Sloan and Robert Brandenberger talk about how we expect inflationary theory to develop, and how observations may lead to new physics in this area. David Sloan, Robert Brandenberger 04 Apr 2017
21 Strings, Inflation, and Alternatives In the third part of their discussion, Dave Sloan and Robert Brandenberger explain the relationship between string theory and inflationary models. Can inflation arise from particle physics, or do we need to look for alternative models? David Sloan, Robert Brandenberger 04 Apr 2017
22 Inflation Predicts In the second part of their discussion, Dave Sloan and Robert Brandenberger tell us what inflation predicts and whether inflation itself seems fine-tuned. This discussion was conducted at the University of Oxford on March 14, 2017. David Sloan, Robert Brandenberger 04 Apr 2017
23 Evidence For Inflation In the first part of their discussion, Dave Sloan and Robert Brandenberger go over our evidence for inflationary theories and discuss how inflationary models improve on the hot big bang. David Sloan, Robert Brandenberger 04 Apr 2017
24 Panel on Inflation Professor Joe Silk talks with Professor Robert Brandenberger, Professor Jerome Martin, and Dr. Dave Sloan about the current state of research and controversies surrounding inflation. Joe Silk, Robert Brandenberger, Jerome Martin, David Sloan 04 Apr 2017
25 Does Inflationary Cosmology Solve Fine-Tuning Problems? Professor Robert Brandenberger (McGill) argues that inflationary models still face considerable challenges. Robert Brandenberger 04 Apr 2017
26 Inflationary Attractors Dr David Sloan (Oxford) discusses the for inflation to occur given typical initial conditions. He argues that, on the right understanding of the background dynamics of the universe, inflationary conditions dominate. David Sloan 04 Apr 2017
27 Inflation After Planck Professor Jerome Martin (Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris) explains the current state of evidence for inflationary models. Jerome Martin 04 Apr 2017
28 Redder is better! Exploring the universe with the successor to Hubble Rebecca Bowler, University of Oxford give a talk about the successor to the Hubble telescope - The James Webb Space Telescope - which will detect infrared radiation. Rebecca Bowler 28 Mar 2017
29 Creative Commons On the trail of the most energetic particles in the universe Rafael Alves Batista, University of Oxford, gives a talk about cosmic rays. Rafael Alves Batista 28 Mar 2017
30 The Quantum and Cosmological Scales How do we combine our theory of the very small with our theory of the largest scales of the universe? In the second part of their discussion, Jim Hartle and Bernard Carr hash out the connections between cosmology and quantum mechanics. Jim Hartle, Bernard Carr 06 Dec 2016
31 What Fine Tunings Are There? Is the universe fine-tuned for life? In the first part of their discussion, Bernard Carr and Jim Hartle discuss how physical theories might contain unexplained assumptions that are necessary for the existence of life. Bernard Carr, Jim Hartle 06 Dec 2016
32 Dark Matter, Fine-Tuned What surprising features of our theories cry out for explanation? Rocky Kolb and Rafael Alves Batista consider features of our theories that look unlikely or unnatural, and what our chances are for building a unified theory that explains them. Rocky Kolb, Rafael Alves Batista 12 Oct 2016
33 Why Now? We’re at a particularly interesting time in the evolution of the universe. Rafael Alves Batista and Rocky Kolb chat about the interesting features of our time, and why we should--or should not--expect to be living now. Rocky Kolb, Rafael Alves Batista 12 Oct 2016
34 Dark Matter Particles What sort of things could dark matter be, and how would we tell which it is? Rafael Alves Batista and Rocky Kolb review the main candidate dark matter particles, and consider our chances for telling which one is out there. Rocky Kolb, Rafael Alves Batista 12 Oct 2016
35 The Future of Dark Matter In the third part of their discussion, Celine Boehm and Justin Read mull over what we can learn from dark matter. Will understanding dark matter lead us to a small change in the standard model, or a large one? Justin Read, Celine Boehm 12 Oct 2016
36 How Does Dark Matter Act? In the second part of their discussion, Celine Boehm and Justin Read talk about how dark matter acts, both on large scales, at early times, and in small galaxies much nearer to us. Justin Read, Celine Boehm 12 Oct 2016
37 How Do We Find Dark Matter? In the first part of their discussion, Justin Read and Celine Boehm go over our evidence for dark matter and consider the possible particles that could make it up. Justin Read, Celine Boehm 12 Oct 2016
38 Dark Matter(s) Discussion Celine Boehm, Rocky Kolb, and Justin Read discuss fine-tuning in dark matter models, how we judge astrophysical parameters to be fine-tuned, how we get evidence for dark matter, supersymmetry, and our prospects for finding the dark matter particle. Celine Boehm, Rocky Kolb, Justin Read 04 Oct 2016
39 The Level of Fine-Tuning it Takes to Make a Dark Matter Model Dr. Celine Boehm (Durham) discusses the possible dark matter particles and the constraints--theoretical and experimental--on their parameter space. Celine Boehm 04 Oct 2016
40 The Decade of the Wimp Dr. Rocky Kolb (Chicago) discusses the theoretical reasons to expect dark matter to be a Weakly Interacting Massive Particle (WIMP), and the prospects for finding one. Rocky Kolb 04 Oct 2016
41 Astrophysical Probes of Dark Matter Dr. Justin Read (Surrey) explains the astrophysical evidence for dark matter, and our prospects for getting more information about its nature and interaction by looking at nearby dwarf galaxies. Justin Read 04 Oct 2016
42 'Senses' Part 3 - Seeing across the galaxy How can you spot what's happening in space billions of light years away from right here on Earth? Garret Cotter 08 Jul 2016
43 The 3rd Workshop in the Physics of Fine Tuning-discussion The 3rd Workshop in the Physics of Fine Tuning - Stars, Galaxies, and the Multiverse, audience and panel discussion John Peacock, Joe Silk, Adrianne Slyz 27 May 2016
44 How do Galaxies know when, where and how quickly to form stars? The 3rd Workshop in the Physics of Fine Tuning - Stars, Galaxies, and the Multiverse, Adrianne Slyz (Oxford) talks about How do Galaxies know when, where and how quickly to form stars? Adrianne Slyz 27 May 2016
45 The Limits of Cosmology The 3rd Workshop in the Physics of Fine Tuning - Stars, Galaxies, and the Multiverse, Joe Silk (Oxford, IAP; John Hopkins) talks about The Limits of Cosmology Joe Silk 27 May 2016
46 Observer Selection and Fine-Tuning Puzzles in Cosmology The 3rd Workshop in the Physics of Fine Tuning - Stars, Galaxies, and the Multiverse, John Peacock (Edinburgh) talks about Observer Selection and Fine-Tuning Puzzles in Cosmology John Peacock 27 May 2016
47 Our Place in the Cosmos Astrophysicist and bestselling author Mario Livio delivers a speculative talk about humans place in the cosmos. Mario Livio 10 May 2016
48 Capitalizing on diversity: Outcomes of planet formation as initial conditions for life Michael R. Meyer, Institute for Astronomy, Department of Physics, ETH Zurich, delivers a talk about planet formation and conditions for life to exist. Michael Meyer 10 May 2016
49 Where and how might we search for life? From planet demographics to biosignatures Professor Suzanne Aigrain is an expert exoplanet researcher. In this talk she will outline the methods for detection and characterisation of exoplanets in the context of finding planets that might harbor life. Suzanne Aigrain 10 May 2016
50 Creative Commons Philae at the comet: a scientific adventure Professor Chris Lintott, Professor of Astrophysics, University of Oxford and presenter of the BBC’s Sky at Night will talk about the history and the science of the voyage. Chris Lintott, Ian Goldin 18 Aug 2015
51 Creative Commons Open Data: The Golden Age of Discovery This documentary follows the experiences of a number of academics and researchers at Oxford as they discuss the implications of Open Data for their research, for academia and for humanity. Chris Lintott, Ben Goldacre 15 Jul 2015
52 The Savile Library Lunchtime lecture by Will Poole accompanying the exhibition Marks of Genius: Masterpieces from the Collections of the Bodleian Libraries. Will Poole 09 Jul 2015
53 'Artificial Intelligence' part 2 - How to create machines that learn Professor Nando de Freitas explains that understanding how our brains work has helped us create machines that learn, and how these learning machines can be put to completing different tasks. Nando de Freitas 19 May 2015
54 'Artificial Intelligence' part 1 - Using artificial intelligence to spot patterns Professor Stephen Roberts explains how machines, whose job it is simply to learn, can help researchers spot scientific needles in data haystacks, which will help us solve some grand challenges. Stephen Roberts 15 Apr 2015
55 String Theory on the Sky Members of the Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics hosted the 3rd morning of Theoretical Physics covering the connections between cosmology and particle physics. David Marsh 24 Mar 2015
56 The Perfect Theory: A Century of Geniuses and the Battle over General Relativity A discussion exploring Pedro Ferreira's book Pedro Ferreira, Harvey Brown, Alex Butterworth, Javier Lezaun 16 Mar 2015
57 Observing by Hand: Sketching the Nebulae in the Nineteenth Century A discussion of Omar Nasim's book Omar Nasim, Stephen Johnston, Martin Kemp, Chris Lintott 16 Mar 2015
58 Astronomy at the Highest Energies Possible Researcher Stephen Rayner talks on how astronomers study the highest energies possible to detect particle accelerators in space. Stephen Rayner 13 Mar 2015
59 Spectromania! James Gilbert, a researcher in astrophysics gives an exciting talk on how astronomy uses Spectroscopy - the study of the interaction between matter and radiated energy. James Gilbert 13 Mar 2015
60 How to see the world in a grain of sand Peter Hatfield gives an astronomy talk entitled: How to see the world in a grain of sand and the entire Universe in a super computer. Peter Hatfield 13 Mar 2015
61 The Beagle expedition to Mars The Beagle 2 probe had not been seen or heard from since December 2003 and had been presumed lost. Researcher Chris Linttot gives an overview and shows newly found images of the probe on the surface of Mars. Chris Lintott 13 Mar 2015
62 The Philae - Rosetta Mission (update) Researcher Colin Wilson gives an update on the Rosetta mission with the latest news on the Philae comet lander Colin Wilson 13 Mar 2015
63 From you to the largest structure in the Universe Robert Simpson, an astronomy researcher from Oxford takes us on a tour of the Universe, explaining the incredible distances and relative dimensions of space. Robert Simpson 19 Dec 2014
64 The Philae - Rosetta Comet Mission On 12 November 2014, the Philae probe achieved the first-ever soft landing on a comet nucleus. Colin Wilson, a researcher from Oxford, gives an update on the landing and explains the history and science behind this incredible mission. Colin Wilson 19 Dec 2014
65 Oxford Astrophysics A video explaining what is Astrophysics and what's going on in Astrophysics at Oxford Chris Lintott, Roger Davies, Jo Dunkley, katherine blundell 22 Jul 2014
66 Creative Commons Building stars, planets and the ingredients for life between the stars Halley Lecture 2013 by Professor Dr Ewine van Dishoeck on new developments in astronomy Ewine van Dishoeck 07 Apr 2014
67 Creative Commons The Fast Track to Finding an Inhabited Exoplanet The 8th Hintze Lecture by Professor David Charbonneau looking at investigating habitable exoplanets. David Charbonneau 07 Apr 2014
68 Creative Commons Lab, Camera, Action: Make your own CD spectrometer How do we know what the stars are made of when we've never been to one? Dr Andrew Steele shows us how to make a spectrometer, a device used by scientists to analyse light, using a cereal box and a CD. Andrew Steele 03 Feb 2014
69 Is our galaxy special? Chris Lintott looks at the distinctive features of our galaxy and whether it is really special. Chris Lintott 31 Jan 2014
70 Galaxy Zoo project Becky Smethurst from the Zooniverse team outlines the Galaxy Zoo project that allows members of the public to classify new galaxies. Becky Smethurst 31 Jan 2014
71 Ancient Astronomies - 7000 years in the Kennett Valley Charles Barclay gives a brief overview of the history of Astronomies and some of the fascinating insights that can be gained from these Ancient practices. Charles Barclay 29 Jan 2014
72 Dark Matter - Are we still in the dark? Kathryn Boast gives a talk about dark matter: what it is, what we know about it, and what the limitations of our knowledge are. Kathryn Boast 28 Jan 2014
73 Inflation - The "BANG" in Big Bang Luke Jew talks about inflation, the process that scientists believe happened at the very start of our universe and is responsible for all the large scale structures that we see around us. Luke Jew 28 Jan 2014
74 Creative Commons Earth-like Planets (and where to find them) Ever wondered if another planet like our own exists in the vast expanse of space around us? Ruth Angus explains her exciting research into Extra Solar Planets (Exo-Planets) and why research in this area is important. Ruth Angus 28 Jan 2014
75 Exoplanets Exoplanets - a talk by Grant Miller. Grant Miller 12 Dec 2013
76 Are we special in the Universe? Peter Hatfield asks if we are special in the Universe. Peter Hatfield 12 Dec 2013
77 Black Holes A talk about Black Holes by Dr Brooke Simmons. Brooke Simmons 12 Dec 2013
78 Cosmology - What We Don't Know Chris Lintott talks about the unknown in the study of cosmology. Chris Lintott 05 Dec 2013
79 Galaxy Zoo Galaxy Zoo is a Citizen Science project, part of the Zooniverse, which asks the public to classify the morphology of galaxies using images taken by Hubble and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Rebecca Smethurst 05 Dec 2013
80 Creative Commons Exploring the Universe Dr Rana Irshad, University of Oxford, gives a brief whistle-stop tour of the exciting initiatives Oxford has running in exploring the vast expanse of the Universe in which we live. Rana Irshad 04 Oct 2013
81 Creative Commons Extra-solar planets: from science-fiction to reality Since the discovery of the first extra-solar planet in the '90s, our perspective of the Universe has changed. Over the last two decades a whole host of exotic planet systems have been found, including analogues of famous science-fiction-worlds. Ruth Angus 04 Jun 2013
82 Creative Commons Extra-solar planets: from science-fiction to reality Since the discovery of the first extra-solar planet in the '90s, our perspective of the Universe has changed. Over the last two decades a whole host of exotic planet systems have been found, including analogues of famous science-fiction-worlds. Ruth Angus 04 Jun 2013
83 Creative Commons Uncovering Black Holes and Hunting for Planets Dr Brooke Simmons talks about Black Holes and planet hunting. Brooke Simmons 16 Apr 2013
84 The Chelyabinsk Meteor In this talk Dr Ken Amor talks about the Chelyabinsk meteor, which entered Earths atmosphere over Russia on the 15th of February 2013. Ken Amor 16 Apr 2013
85 The Chelyabinsk Meteor In this talk Dr Ken Amor talks about the Chelyabinsk meteor, which entered Earths atmosphere over Russia on the 15th of February 2013. Ken Amor 16 Apr 2013
86 Stepping into the unknown: the search for new planets Astrophysicist Dr Suzanne Aigrain talks about the search for extra-solar planets. Suzanne Aigrain 16 Apr 2013
87 A History of the Universe in 12 Minutes From big bang to the present day, Chris Lintott summarises the history of the Universe in 12 minutes. Chris Lintott 16 Apr 2013
88 LOFAR and the SKA - The Universe in radio waves In this talk Dr Matt Jarvis talks about radio astronomy. Matt Jarvis 16 Apr 2013
89 Killer asteroids In this talk Jocelyn Bell Burnell talks about large asteroid impacts. Jocelyn Bell Burnell 16 Apr 2013
90 Pluto - no more a planet In this talk Jocelyn Bell Burnell talks about the reclassification of Pluto to a Dwarf planet and the history of its discovery. Jocelyn Bell Burnell 16 Apr 2013
91 Astro Photography Showcase Mel Gigg of the Chipping Norton Amateur Astronomy Group showcases some fantastic amateur astro-photography. Mel Gigg 16 Apr 2013
92 Rogue planet Oxford Sparks presents a journey around the planets. Find out more and read about the science behind the animation at www.oxfordsparks.net/planet. Chris Lintott 15 Apr 2013
93 Creative Commons Galaxies as a Plate of Fruit Professor Roger Davies explains how we can learn about the different shapes of galaxies using a plate of fruit and a telescope. Roger Davies 05 Feb 2013
94 Observing with the Naked Eye Charles Barclay offers advice on how to get the most out of stargazing with the naked eye and the astronomical activities to look out for in the coming months. Charles Barclay 04 Feb 2013
95 Stargazing Open Day 2013 In January 2013 over 1,000 people visited the Astronomy Open Day to meet scientists, hear the latest on research at Oxford and find out more about the stars. This video shows the range of hands-on activities that took place throughout the day. Leigh Fletcher, Chris Lintott 31 Jan 2013
96 Large Meteorite Impacts on Earth Ken Amor looks at the science of large meteorite impacts on Earth. Ken Amor 30 Jan 2013
97 Large Meteorite Impacts on Earth Ken Amor looks at the science of large meteorite impacts on Earth. Ken Amor 30 Jan 2013
98 Creative Commons Cosmology Jo Dunkley reviews the latest research in Cosmology. Jo Dunkley 30 Jan 2013
99 Creative Commons Robotic Planetary Exploration Leigh Fletcher shows how we can use robots to discover more about the planets. Leigh Fletcher 30 Jan 2013
100 Creative Commons Planets, Planets Everywhere! Dr Chris Lintott, University of Oxford, gives an overview of the discoveries made about the many billions of exo-planets - the planets that surround stars. Chris Lintott 17 Jan 2013