News - Trottier Space Institute at McGill

Exploring the Cosmos from the Ends of the Earth

Jun 21, 2024, National Geographic

TSI Prof. Cynthia Chiang's presentation from the 2024 National Geographic Explorers Festival.

Cynthia Chiang, Cosmologist

Jun 20, 2024, National Geographic

National Geographic Explorer Cynthia Chiang studies the cosmic dawn and the dark ages. As an associate professor of physics at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, Chiang specializes in building and deploying radio telescopes. She travels to remote locations including the Canadian High Arctic and Marion Island in the sub-Antarctic. Her work has allowed her to collaborate with researchers in other fields and provide new opportunities for students, all of which have revealed unexpected new dimensions in Chiang’s professional explorations.

Cosmic Journey II: Voyage into the Abyss

Jun 5, 2024, Smithsonian

Hitch a ride on the Chandra X-ray Observatory as it scours deep space for some of the most enigmatic and misunderstood objects in the universe: black holes. TSI Prof. Daryl Haggard is a guest on this podcast episode.

Astrophysics award honours student research with nod to pioneer

May 31, 2024, McGill Giving

Renowned astrophysicist Victoria Kaspi has created a PhD thesis award named in honour of trailblazing McGill graduate Allie Vibert Douglas

On Opposite Sides of the Globe, Yet Still Connected

May 30, 2024, The Weather Channel

New research examines how a melting ice sheet near the North Pole can actually influence an ice sheet 12,000 miles away on the South Pole.

Repenser notre compréhension des trous noirs et des étoiles à neutrons

Apr 13, 2024, Radio Canada

Des scientifiques de différents pays, dont certains de l’Université de la Colombie-Britannique (UBC), ont détecté le signal d'un événement stellaire qui pourrait permettre de mieux comprendre l’écart de masse observé entre les trous noirs et les étoiles à neutrons. Ce type d'observation aide les scientifiques à sonder les événements cosmiques qui ont contribué à l’évolution de l’Univers.

Eclipse events abound at McGill

Mar 21, 2024, McGill Reporter

A series of eclipse-related events will be held on the Downtown campus, at Macdonald Campus, and the Gault Nature Reserve on Mont Saint-Hilaire. More than just watch parties, all three events have much more on tap, including educational fare, interactive activities, and lots of fun for young and old. The Downtown Campus event is organized by the TSI and the Department of Physics. The Eclipse Fair and Viewing Party will run from 1 to 4:30 pm on April 8th, with hands-on activities, demos, and booths for all ages to explore the science behind eclipses and other fascinating facets of solar physics. The Fair will include everything from a cloud chamber and make-your-own-pinhole-viewer kiosk, to a scale solar system model, and opportunities to view the sun through solar telescopes.

Demystifying the mysterious fast radio bursts

Feb 13, 2024, The Tribune

On Feb. 7, 2024, the Trottier Space Institute hosted a public lecture on the mystery of Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs), fleeting blasts of cosmic energy that can outshine an entire galaxy, but only for a few milliseconds. They invited Duncan Lorimer, professor of Physics and Astronomy and Associate Dean for External Research Development at the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences at West Virginia University. He, along with his colleagues Maura McLaughlin and Matthew Bailes, first discovered FRBs in 2007. Thanks to this discovery, Lorimer’s team received the Shaw Prize in Astronomy in 2023.

Spotlighting McGill’s women in STEM

Feb 7, 2024, McGill Reporter

In advance of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (Feb. 11), the McGill Reporter featured some of McGill’s talented female researchers who discuss their work, their inspiration, and their advice to women pursing a career in STEM. TSI Prof. Eve Lee is among those highlighted in this piece.

M87* One Year Later: Proof of a persistent black hole shadow

Jan 19, 2024, McGill Reporter

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration, including Professor Daryl Haggard at McGill University, has released new images of M87*, the supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy Messier 87, using data from observations taken in April 2018. With the participation of the newly commissioned Greenland Telescope and a dramatically improved recording rate across the array, the 2018 observations give us a view of the source independent from the first observations in 2017.