Public Lecture: The Fast Radio Sky
Victoria Kaspi, Professor, McGill University and Director, McGill Space Institute
When we look at the night sky, we see a backdrop that appears timeless and unchanging. However, in reality, the Universe is teeming with activity - often explosive and cataclysmic. One recently recognized celestial phenomenon is that of "Fast Radio Bursts": very short burst of radio light coming from far outside our Milky Way galaxy, and representing explosions of enormous proportion. Their origin is presently unknown. In this talk, the Fast Radio Burst phenomenon will be described and how a new Canadian radio telescope, CHIME, is making huge progress in unravelling these mysterious cosmic events.