This event comes to you in association with our friends from PubhD Glasgow.

The Sun: Solar Flares and Their Connection to Us:
Solar flares are incredibly energetic events that we regularly observe in the Sun’s atmosphere, releasing vast quantities of energy, heating the atmosphere. They could pose insight in the so-called “coronal heating problem”: the Sun’s atmosphere is more than 100 times hotter than its surface. Are events like solar flares behind this counterintuitive temperature difference? Furthermore, solar flares often drive events known as coronal mass ejections which are large volumes of the solar atmosphere ejected by the energy produced in a flare. These ejections can interfere with satellites and electronics on Earth and could cause catastrophic damage.

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Speakers and topics:

Kristopher Cooper: I investigate high energy emission (X-rays and extreme ultraviolet) from small solar flares to investigate their properties and their influences on the solar atmosphere. I also investigate how similar these small flares are to their larger counterparts.

David Millar: The whole of the Sun’s atmosphere is “shaken up” by large solar flares, and these shakes affect the way energy is transported through its many layers. I look for evidence of waves and oscillations in the solar atmosphere during flare activity by identifying periodic variations in imaging data.

John Armstrong: I am interested in one of the layers of the Sun’s atmosphere: the chromosphere. Particularly, the changes in the conditions in this layer caused by solar flares. The chromosphere is the least well understood region in the Sun’s atmosphere and insight into its workings and its response to flares can be key to understanding what triggers flares in the first place.

The format is nice and simple:
1: Three researchers will each have 10 minutes to talk about their subject area to an interested audience in a pub
2: There will be up to 20 minutes of (friendly!) Q&A per speaker.
3: Each speaker gets at least one pint (or other drink of their choice).
A whiteboard/flip chart and coloured pens will be provided.

Kickoff at 7pm sharp. Drop-in event … no tickets required
This is event is free to attend, although we will be asking for donations at the end of the talk. Participants are under no obligation whatsoever to donate, however please rest assured that the money we collect doesn’t end up in anyone’s pocket – it is used to fund our overhead costs, and travel/accommodation for our speakers who come from further afield.

Accessibility: The talk is on the top floor of the store, however there is however a lift available for customers to use.