Nobel Laureate delivers public lecture on nature of the universe

To understand what’s above, some Queen’s researchers are seeking answers below the Earth. Nobel Laureate and Queen’s Professor Emeritus Arthur McDonald will lecture on the topic of how researchers are uncovering the nature of the Universe from SNOLAB, an underground laboratory in Sudbury. The annual Ewan Lecture is a free event taking place on Wednesday, Jan. 17 at the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts. The lecture “Knowing our Universe from a Hole in the Ground” begins at 7 p.m. and is open to all ages.

In addition to the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics, Dr. McDonald was the recipient of the 2016 Breakthrough Prize for the discovery that redefined the basic laws of particle physics: neutrinos have mass. In order to observe and study these tiny subatomic particles, Dr. McDonald and his team operated the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) experiment in an active nickel mine. Later becoming SNOLAB, the facility at 2 km underground is the deepest clean lab in the world. Dr. McDonald will illustrate how this unique location is continuing to help solve some of the universe’s biggest mysteries, such as dark matter, the elusive building block of the universe that makes up almost 95 per cent of its matter.

The event hosted by the McDonald Institute and the Department of Physics, Engineering Physics, and Astronomy is part of the ongoing George & Maureen Ewan Lecture Series. Supported by a generous $100,000 donation, the initiative fosters seminar and lecture programming designed to increase scientific discourse and culture within the astroparticle physics community at Queen’s. Professor Emeritus George Ewan’s vision was to make scientific work accessible to the general public, emphasizing the importance of research outreach and communication.

Register for your free ticket to attend.

Note: This story originally appeared in the Gazette.