Community Astronomy Talk “Sea Meets the Stars” with Dr. J. Xavier Prochaska

Join us for a free, ʻohana-friendly public astronomy talk with Professor J. Xavier Prochaska, Professor of Astronomy & Astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), and an Astronomer with UC Observatories (UCO), and Affiliate of the Ocean Sciences Department at UCSC on Tuesday, October 6 at 7:00 pm at Kahilu Theater in Waimea. Doors open at 6:45 pm. Seating is first come.

Distinguished Professor J. Xavier Prochaska will describe the rise of large datasets in astronomy and oceanography on the sky and ocean, and then explain how AI enables scientists to perform unprecedented analyses. His talk will trace the arc of the scientific endeavor to decipher our past, to understand the dynamics of the world we currently experience and observe, and to try and predict our future.

The theme of Prochaska’s talk, “Sea Meets the Stars,” takes its name from the fact that he is now leading research in both oceanography and astronomy. Each field has experienced the so-called “big data revolution” fueled by fundamental, technology-driven changes to data collection and analysis in science. Now, with the AI revolution upon us, its impacts are being tempered by the rigor and greater scrutiny of the scientific method.

About Professor X:

Professor J. Xavier Prochaska is a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz from the Departments of Astronomy and Astrophysics and Ocean Sciences.  After a career focused on gas in, around and in between galaxies that began with his PhD using the Keck telescopes, he pivoted to oceanography.  His research interests include applying artificial intelligence to remote sensing datasets, fast radio bursts, exploring the Earth’s biomass with hyperspectral ocean color observations, and assessing dissolved oxygen and the transfer of energy at the submesoscale with glider data.