Caltech Stargazing Lecture and Guided Telescope Gaze

Date/Time
Date(s) - 06/26/2026
8:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Category(ies)

• Outdoors
• Technology & Science

Caltech Stargazing Lecture features Radio Beacons that illuminate space’s dark corners (Photo – NASA)

Caltech invites the public for its free look into the stars on Friday, June 26, 2026, from 8:00 pm to 10:00pm at Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics.

The lecture topic will be Illuminating the “Emptiness” of Space with Radio Beacons, given by Stella Ocker, Brinson Prize Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Astronomy, Caltech.

Ocker describes her talk:

While stars are the most obvious naked-eye feature in the night sky, they actually constitute a tiny fraction of all the ordinary matter in the universe. Most of the visible matter in the cosmos takes the form of diffuse ionized gas, or “plasma,” distributed between stars and galaxies. In this talk I will discuss how pulsars and fast radio bursts are used as cosmic flashlights to illuminate the distribution of this plasma within our Milky Way and across cosmic time. I will share the exciting prospects for studying these cosmic radio sources with upcoming surveys led by Caltech, which will ultimately lead us to a deeper understanding of galaxy evolution and the universe itself.

• • 8:00 pm –8:45 pm: Public Lecture
  • 8:45 pm –9:45 pm: Panel Q&A and Guided Stargazing

Stargazing is dependent on clear weather, but lecture and Q&A happen regardless. Event will occur in-person, with lecture and Q&A additionally live-streamed on YouTube.

For remote viewers, the event will be live-streamed here: https://www.youtube.com/live/j1D5PgCTDXY

About the Series

Stargazing Lectures are free lectures at a public level followed by a Q&A panel and guided stargazing with telescopes (weather permitting). All events are held at the Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics at Caltech and are free and open to all. No reservations are needed. Lectures are 30 minutes; stargazing and panel Q&A last 60 minutes. Stay only as long as you want.

Stargazing is only possible with clear skies, but the lecture and panel Q&A take place regardless of weather.

For directions, weather updates, and more information, visit http://outreach.astro.caltech.edu. For more information, contact Cameron Hummels by email at chummels@caltech.edu.