Pulsars and our understanding of the cosmos

Since their discovery in 1967, observations of pulsars – the incredibly dense, highly magnetic, rapidly rotating remnants of supernova explosions – have been used to increase our understanding in many areas of fundamental physics and astrophysics. In this lecture, Dr Ferdman will discuss the state of astrophysics leading up to and including this momentous discovery, and how observation since then of these cosmic lighthouses has shed important light on our understanding of the Universe: from testing Einstein’s theories, to probing extreme conditions that we could never hope to reproduce on Earth.

About this month’s speaker

Dr Robert Ferdman is a lecturer in Physics in at UEA.

His research work focuses on observational astrophysics, particularly on the study of pulsars. Pulsars are the neutron star (NS) remnants of supernova explosions. They produce radio emission beams from their magnetic poles, which are detected once per rotation, every time the beam sweeps past our line of sight. They often display outstanding rotational stability, approaching that of atomic clocks over timescales of several years. Dr. Ferdman takes advantage of the astounding timing precision of pulsars to perform the most demanding tests of Einstein’s theory of general relativity. You can read more about his research here. https://research-portal.uea.ac.uk/en/persons/robert-ferdman

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Anyone is welcome – beginner or expert – and there is no need to pre-book. A small charge applies to help us cover costs (typically £3 for non-members; £2 for NEAS members; U16s free). Doors open at 7.30pm with the talk starting at 8.00pm.

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