Physics

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this spring. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, April 27 and May 4, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this spring. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, April 27 and May 4, from 9:00 PM until 10:30 PM, weather permitting.

A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.

Commencement Senior reception for Physic’s Department.

Psychology, Geography, and Physics Departments joint reception for graduating seniors and their guests. Refreshments will be served in the McCardell Bicentennial Hall Great Hall.

Measurement of the faintest signals has become a vital part of disciplines as diverse as medicine, astronomy, interplanetary communications and intelligence gathering.  While our curiosity has driven us to probe ever-weaker signals in Nature, the framework and philosophy for our measurement tools has remained largely unchanged for centuries, entrenched in a classical interpretation of our world – which we know to be incomplete. In this talk I will present a holistic approach to sensing which combines quantum mechanics, information theory and measurement.

Virtually visit the Mittelman Observatory and its telescopes atop McCardell Bicentennial Hall and enjoy the night sky live.  Weather permitting. Please register for this free event at http://go.middlebury.edu/virtualstargazing

The far extent of our solar system — the Kuiper Belt and beyond — is a largely unaltered relic, frozen shortly after the formation of the planets. Exploring the small bodies that inhabit this region leads to a better understanding of the composition of our proto-planetary nebula, motions within the solar system before the planets acquired their current locations, and allows us to compare our solar system to those found around other stars.

NASA’s Cassini spacecraft orbited Saturn for thirteen years, transforming our understanding of this beautiful ringed planet and its entourage of moons. From giant atmospheric storms on Saturn and methane seas on Titan, to icy plumes on Enceladus and density waves in Saturn’s rings created by the planet itself, the mission was filled with surprises and delights.

Mittelman Observatory and Middlebury Physics will again host stargazing open house nights this autumn. These Observatory events are scheduled for Friday evenings, September 13 and September 20, from 8:30 PM until 10:00 PM, weather permitting.

Jupiter and Saturn will be in the evening sky on these dates. A variety of interesting stars, star clusters, and nebulae will also be visible through the Observatory’s telescopes. The Observatory includes a 24-inch telescope in a dome and smaller telescopes on the roof.