The Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence began in Green Bank, West Virginia through the endeavors of Frank Drake, at the start of his career as a scientist in the early days of the Green Bank Observatory. To honor Drake’s impact on the public understanding of science, an award was established in 2019. A scientist who has made significant contributions to society, inspiring others to explore the mysteries of the Universe, is selected each year to share a lecture about their work.
In 2019, this winner was Ira Flatow, a household name in science journalism, and host of the popular radio show Science Friday. In 2020, astrophysicist Alyssa Goodman was selected – and the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to an in person lecture – until now.
The Observatory will share Goodman’s lecture on Saturday, April 23rd at 7pm in the Science Center auditorium. The public is welcome to attend in person, but must pre-register at greenbankobservatory.org. The lecture will also be live streamed and the link can be found at our website.
Alyssa Goodman is a Professor of astronomy at Harvard University and a Research associate at the Smithsonian Institution. She will share stories of her amazing experience as an astronomer and about her work to develop data visualization software as the next frontier in astronomy and astrophysics. Her use of software includes “predicting the future” using computer simulations and modelling. Goodman’s talk will inspire and share resources for scientists and science lovers of all ages in all areas of STEM education.
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Contact GBO Public Information Officer Jill Malusky jmalusky@nrao.edu
