Some of the brightest and most fascinating objects in the Universe are exploding stars known as supernovae. These colossal outbursts result from the deaths of stars and for a time can outshine the entire galaxy in which they are found. Detailed observations of these explosions have raised nearly as many questions as they have helped us answer and astronomers have discovered that supernovae are essential to the existence of the planets in our Solar System and to life itself. In addition, observations of very distant supernovae provided the first evidence that our Universe is dominated by a repulsive and mysterious "dark energy" that acts as a kind of anti-gravity.
Jeffrey M. Silverman is a fifth-year PhD student at the University of California, Berkeley who studies and observes supernovae with Professor Alexei V. Filippenko. He is particularly interested in relatively nearby supernovae and how the subtle differences among them relate to their farther-away brethren. Jeffrey was born and raised in Anaheim, CA just down the street from Disneyland. He received a B.S. in Astrophysics and a B.A. in Mathematics cum laude from Rice University in Houston, TX in 2005, and a M.A. in Astrophysics from UC Berkeley in 2007. In addition to staying up all night to look through telescopes, Jeffrey likes to stay up all night to watch movies, go to concerts (both rock and classical), and hang out in San Francisco.
Science Cafes are held at La Pena Cultural Center in Berkeley, from 7pm-9pm
