University of Iowa Astronomy Lab Specialist and Observatory Manager Andi Swirbul will be the guest presenter at Cedar Amateur Astronomers free public Night on Saturday October 25 at 7:30 PM.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, now nearing completion in Chile, is unlike any other ground-based observatory. Equipped with a unique mirror system and the world's largest digital camera, it will have the ability to generate a sky survey of unprecedented size and speed, capturing the entirety of the southern sky every few nights. This is expected to revolutionize the way astronomers study supernovae, asteroids, and other transient events. However, like many other modern observatories, its efficiency will create a flood of data (approximately 20 terabytes every night). In this talk, Swirbul will introduce the history and scientific goals of the Rubin Observatory, explain the challenges brought about by astronomy's "big data" era, and show how cutting-edge software, machine learning algorithms, and citizen scientists are becoming essential partners in discovery.
Weather permitting, telescope viewing will follow the presentation. This event will be in person as also available on Zoom. Go to cedar-astronomers.org/events for more information and a Zoom link.
