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January Meeting : Exploring the Oceans of the Solar System
January 23, 2020 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
‘Exploring the Oceans of the Solar System’, plus ‘My Backyard Observatory’
Credit UVic Photo Services.
2 Presentations tonight for our first meeting of 2020.
Main Presentation : Jon Willis, Associate Professor UVIC :-
‘Exploring the Oceans of the Solar System’
Abstract:
The solar system moons Europa and Enceladus harbour vast sub-surface oceans. How might we one day explore them and what might we discover? Join UVic astronomer and astrobiologist Jon Willis as he travels with the Exploration Vessel Nautilus to learn what Earth’s oceans have to teach us about alien life and how to find it.
Bio:
Jon Willis is an Associate Professor at the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Victoria. As an astronomer he studies the physical contents of the Universe and his research covers many aspects of cosmology and astrophysics. Jon is particularly interested in the emerging science of astrobiology, the search for life beyond Earth. In 2016 he published “All These Worlds Are Yours: The Scientific Search for Alien Life”, a popular science book by Yale University Press.
Short Presentation : Society Member, Mark Hird-Rutter :-
‘Why I built a back yard observatory, how I designed it and what my experience has been using it.’
Mark Hird-Rutter Bio : Mark Hird-Rutter had a long and successful career in the field of Geomatics, the study of measuring the earth. Within the field of Geomatics, he focused on aerial photography, photogrammetry, cartography and laser scanning. For the last 12 years of his career he taught as an Instructor in Geomatics at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. One of Mark Hird-Rutter’s main tasks during his career was systems analysis and design. Making work processes work more effective, faster and cheaper. Skills he used both in the industry and in his teaching program at BCIT. In 2006 he won the BCIT Teaching Excellence Award, given to 5 people out of the staff of 1100 instructors. After retiring from BCIT in 2014 he moved to Chemainus. Here his focus is on his hobbies: art, astronomy and 3D printing and also on Chemainus Climate Solutions. He is also involved in Saint Peter Quamichan Anglican Church in Duncan and helps run a program called Messy Church.