2–6 Sept 2019
Europe/Zurich timezone

Public Lecture

Our Universe: the beginning, and an end

by Prof. Dr. Eiichiro Komatsu 

 


Location: RWTH Aachen University, C.A.R.L., Classenstrasse, Aachen, Hörsaal H03

Time: Thursday 05.09.2019, from 20:00 to 21:00

Abstract: How did the Universe begin? What is the Universe made of? Will the Universe end? If so, how? Remarkably, we can find answers to these questions by scientific means. The Universe was once in a hot and dense state, like a fireball. The light that filled the fireball Universe did not go away - it is still with us. We can collect this light, called the "cosmic microwave background", to study in detail how the Universe began and evolved. The fate of the Universe is determined by the mysterious "dark energy" that occupies 70% of the energy of the Universe today. Understanding this may tell us that the Universe ends in a catastrophic state. In this lecture, we present the history, the latest results, and the future of cosmic microwave background research, which will tell us how the Universe began and may end.

Speaker: Eiichiro Komatsu is a Japanese physicist, well known for his world-leading level research in cosmology. After studying in Tokyo, he worked for many years in the United States, where he had a major contribution to the  WMAP satellite experiment, which mapped the cosmic microwave background. He moved to Germany and became a director at the Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics in Munich in 2012. He is also well known for his very clear and inspiring talks on the modern understanding of the evolution of the  universe.