Illuminating dark energy

Astrophysicists study phenomena that occur on scales that we can’t even in principle achieve here on Earth — and modern telescopes are giving us an unprecedented view.

We can now see the Universe as it was before galaxies even existed. We have found thousands of planets orbiting other stars. We regularly detect supernovae that went off billions of years before the earth even formed. We’ve even detected gravitational waves — ripples in space itself. And most enigmatically, we've discovered some kind of "dark energy" that is accelerating the expansion of the universe, contrary to our expectation that gravity should slow it down.

In this talk, astrophysicist Professor Tamara Davis will regale us with some of the latest news in astrophysics, and some of her experiences from two decades of research into the dark side of the Universe.

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Professor Tamara Davis is a professor of astrophysics at The University of Queensland. She’s been trying to solve the mysteries of the Universe for over two decades, and has probably revealed more mysteries than she’s solved. In particular, she’s helped confirm that 95% of the Universe is made up of dark matter and dark energy. She leads the Australian Dark Energy Survey (OzDES), was awarded the Australian Academy of Science medal for female leadership in science, and is a passionate science communicator, including as occasional television host for ABC Catalyst.