Dark Matter Day at The University of Sydney
31st October at 6 pm
Messel Lecture theatre, Sydney Nanoscience Hub
There’s more to the world than what meets the eye. Scientists believe that 85% of the matter in the Universe is made of an invisible substance they call “dark matter”. While astronomers have been tracking the effects of dark matter for decades, it has so far evaded detection in the laboratory. Its fundamental nature remains a mystery today. Nevertheless, we have many theories for what the true identity of this substance could be and right now we are building experiments to test those ideas.
As part of the international Dark Matter Day on Monday, 31st October we would like to invite you to The University of Sydney for an evening exploring this mysterious substance. We will hear about the evidence for the existence of dark matter, theories of what it might be, and learn about how scientists are searching for it by building detectors in a gold mine right here in Australia! Join us from 6 pm until 7:30 pm to meet our experts and ask them your questions about dark matter. This free event will be held in the Messel Lecture Theatre, Sydney Nano Science Hub (A31) on the Camperdown Campus.
To have an estimate of attendee numbers we ask that you please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/dark-matter-day-at-the-university-of-sydney-tickets-443801009767
But please note that attendance for this event is free and registration is not required for entry.
Speakers
 | Prof. Geraint Lewis Prof Lewis is an astronomer working at the Sydney Institute for Astronomy (SIfA). He undertakes a broad spectrum of research. His program involves looking at the influence of dark energy and dark matter on the evolution and ultimate fate of the Universe. For Dark Matter Day 2022 Prof. Lewis will give us an overview of the case and evidence for the existence of dark matter in the universe. |
 | Dr Ciaran O’Hare Dr O’Hare is a theoretical physicist who works on using particle physics to develop theories of dark matter as well as devising new experimental techniques to try and test those ideas in the laboratory. For dark matter day Dr O’Hare will be giving a crash course on how to come up with a theory of dark matter and explain how we can try to test those ideas in space and on Earth. |
 | Dr Theresa Fruth Dr Fruth is an experimental astroparticle physicist working on the direct detection of dark matter. In her talk, she will discuss the essential ingredients needed for a dark matter detector and explain why these experiments are usually located deep underground in interesting places like gold mines! |
Host
 | Petr Lebedev Petr is a science communicator who has appeared as an expert on BBC Radio5, ABC, and was a researcher on a Discovery Channel documentary series. He is also the COO/Producer at the Veritasium Science YouTube channel, which has over 12 million subscribers. |
Location
Messel Lecture Theatre, Sydney Nanoscience Hub. Directions to the event can be found here: https://studentvip.com.au/usyd/main/maps/152117
