Cosmic Fireworks ~ Professor Rene Breton (University of Manchester)

Abstract:

Our Universe evolves on such a long timescale compared to the human lifespan that it is easy to think that nothing changes in a noticeable way. However, this picture is far from being true: the sky is populated with thousands of transient and explosive events such as supernovae, black hole outbursts and colliding neutron stars. In this talk I will explore the new horizons offered by time-domain astrophysics and the extreme nature of the events that spark in the sky.

Bio:

Rene Breton received his PhD in Physics from McGill University, Canada, in 2009. He is a Professor of Astrophysics at the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics at The University of Manchester and he currently holds a prestigious European Research Council Starter Grant. His main research interests revolve around the study of pulsars, which he uses to attempt to understand matter under extreme density, gravity and magnetic fields. Some of his past work enabled us to test 'geodetic spin precession' - a phenomenon predicted to exist in General Relativity - for the first time in the strong gravity environment. Rene also has a keen interest for science communication. He co-funded Pulsar Hunters, a citizen science project seeking help from volunteers to find new pulsars.