ESA
Join the Astronomer Royal for Scotland, Professor Catherine Heymans, for a Halloween special as we journey through the dark side of our Universe. Catherine will share the latest discoveries on invisible dark matter and mysterious dark energy, explaining why she believes that in order to truly understand the dark side, we will need a complete revolution in our understanding of fundamental physics.
The Space Community Call will take place on 31st October 12pm-1.30 pm.
Please register by 30th October to be able to attend.
This event is part of a series of events ASDC has been running since 2023 to bring together space and astronomy public engagement colleagues to explore the latest space news and share ideas on engaging audiences on the most relevant space topics. These community calls are open to all space engagement practitioners, so please share the details with your networks.
Alongside the keynote there will be hands on demos to give you inspiration to engage your audiences on dark matter, dark energy and the Euclid mission, with contributions from:
- James Fawcett, Euclid UK Science Ground Segment Outreach and Administration Coordinator, The University of Edinburgh
- Sheila Kanani MBE, Her Place For Space
- Elin Roberts, Head of Public Engagement, Life Science Centre
Keynote
Catherine Heymans is Scotland’s 11th Astronomer Royal and the first female to hold this honorary title in its 200 year history. As an Astrophysics Professor at the University of Edinburgh, she is well known for her research using deep sky observations to map the dark Universe. She holds the Royal Astronomical Society’s William Herschel Medal, a Max-Planck Humboldt Research Award, and is a fellow of both the Royal Society of Edinburgh and Leopoldina, the National Academies of Scotland and Germany. As well as being a regular contributor to BBC radio and television, Catherine has co-authored over 200 articles in scientific journals. Her new popular science book “How to Design a Universe: the Science of Real and Virtual Worlds” will be published in September 2026.
Please register if you would like to attend and share with your colleagues. Registration will close noon on 30th October
Please get in touch if you would like to contribute to these community meetings or suggest topics and speakers to include.
Contact Cait Campbell ASDC