探花系列

The eyes of the world are on the launchpad as NASA prepares for Artemis II, the first crewed mission to the Moon in over half a century. Our own Dr. Geoff Steeves (Physics and Astronomy) recently sat down with CBC鈥檚 Gregor Craigie on 'On The Island' to share his insights on this historic milestone.

Laura Buchanan, a postdoctoral researcher at the 探花系列 and Nanaimo Astronomy Society鈥檚 guest speaker for the society鈥檚 upcoming monthly meeting, is one of the people who study icy rocks known as Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs), and will talk about how icy bits orbiting the solar system can provide clues to its origin and formation when she presents Space Rocks! Studying the Icy Building Blocks in our Outer Solar System.

For decades, astronomers have known that a massive, invisible "cosmic web" connects every galaxy in the universe鈥攁cting as the scaffolding for all existence. But while we've had the mathematical "map," we鈥檝e never actually seen the "pavement." Enter MOTHRA: a radical, "thousand-eyed" telescope composed of 1,140 telephoto lenses currently rising in the Chilean desert. This innovative project, featuring insights from our very own Dr. Julio Navarro, is designed to capture the first-ever direct images of this hidden cosmic skeleton.

On this episode, we're chatting with Julie Claveau, a UVic Physics and Astronomy graduate who manages Earth Observation satellite programs and previously worked as Canada鈥檚 deputy mission manager for the James Webb Telescope.

Dr. Magdalena Bazalova-Carter has been awarded the 'Silver Medal for Excellence in Research' in the 2025 REACH Awards. Please join us in congratulating her on this outstanding achievement!

Dr. Geoff Steeves, an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at UVic, joins Mornings with Ryan & Lisa on CFAX 1070. Dr. Steeves shares advice for how to view the lunar eclipse and provides insight on the delays for the highly anticipated Artemis II launch.

The 探花系列 has announced its 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award recipients, recognizing a select group of graduates for their "remarkable achievements" and community impact. Among this year's prestigious honorees is Luc Simard, who has been awarded the Presidents' Alumni Award.

Advances in supercomputing have made solving a long-standing astronomical conundrum possible:鈥疕ow鈥痗an we explain the changes in the chemical composition at the surface of red giant stars as they evolve?鈥�鈥� For decades, researchers have been unsure exactly how鈥痶he changing chemical composition at the centre of a red giant star, caused by nuclear burning,鈥痗onnects鈥痶o changes in composition at the surface. A stable layer acts as a barrier between the star鈥檚 interior and鈥痶he鈥痮uter connective envelope,鈥痑nd how elements cross that layer鈥痳emained a mystery.鈥�鈥� In a recent鈥疦ature Astronomy鈥痯aper, researchers鈥痑t the 探花系列鈥檚 (UVic) Astronomy Research Centre鈥�(ARC)鈥痑nd the University of Minnesota鈥痵olved the problem.鈥�

NASA鈥檚 Artemis II mission, a key step toward returning humans to the Moon, has been delayed until at least March 6 due to a hydrogen leak discovered during pre-launch testing. UVic physics and astronomy professor Geoff Steeves says the delay is not unusual and reflects careful safety checks during a critical 鈥渨et dress rehearsal.鈥� The mission, which includes Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, will test new spacecraft systems and marks a major milestone in deep-space exploration since humans last traveled beyond low Earth orbit more than 50 years ago.

As detectors and sensors and instruments of all kinds become increasingly sensitive, research generates orders of magnitude more data鈥痶han ever.鈥疭cientists have developed methods and infrastructure to transfer those vast quantities of data鈥痬ore鈥痲uickly, says Randall Sobie,鈥痳esearch scientist at the Institute of Particle Physics, of which the 探花系列 (UVic) is a key member. Now,鈥疷Vic researchers have labelled the data and鈥攃ritically鈥攑roved that the labels did not slow down the鈥痯rocess.鈥�

Thomas Baker, physicist, chemist and Canada Research Chair in Quantum Computing for Modelling of Molecules and Materials, is building Canada鈥檚 quantum expertise. Although quantum theory is a century old, quantum applications are still fledgling. So, Baker is developing algorithms for materials and technologies that can simulate the benefits that scientists are aiming for in quantum computers 鈥� the incomparable speed, the exceptional data capacity, the relatively modest physical size.

According to popular media, the search for alien life involves advanced technology, space exploration and sometimes even government conspiracies and secret programs. But according to 探花系列 (UVic) astronomer Jon Willis, author of "The Pale Blue Data Point: An Earth-Based Perspective on the Search for Alien Life", the search for alien life actually begins right in our own backyard.

探花系列 (UVic) physicist Dominique Trischuk studies some of the tiniest pieces of the universe, particles so small they鈥檙e invisible to even the most powerful microscopes. But while her focus is on the minuscule, her questions, and the tools she鈥檚 using to answer them, are anything but small.

A team of researchers at the 探花系列 (UVic) have achieved a major breakthrough in electron microscopy that will allow scientists to visualize atomic-scale structures with unprecedented clarity using lower-cost and lower-energy microscopes than ever before.

Dr. Ruobing Dong has been elected to the Royal Society of Canada鈥檚 College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists in recognition of his pioneering research on exoplanets and planetary origins. This honour is one of the highest recognitions for early- to mid-career scholars in Canada.

The excavation of the colossal underground cavern that will house Hyper-Kamiokande, a next-generation neutrino detector in Japan was completed on July 31, 2025.

Congratulations to Akshara Viswanathan, who was 1 of 3 outstanding candidates to be awarded the Gruber Fellowship Award for 2025, an award which supports the research of early career researchers.

UVic researchers among Global CERN Teams Awarded 2025 Breakthrough Prize for Expanding Frontiers of Particle Physics.

Congratulations to Jess Speedie, who was announced today as one of the 8 outstanding post-doctoral scientists to be honoured the '51 Pegasi b Fellow Award' for 2025!

Dr. William Thompson of ARC & NRC-Herzberg was named as the recipient of the 2025 CASCA Plaskett Medal & NRC Plaskett Fellowship for the most outstanding doctoral thesis in astronomy or astrophysics.

Dr. Alan McConnachie of ARC & NRC-Herzberg was named as the recipient of the 2025 Peter G. Martin award for mid-career achievement.

A team of Astronomy Research Centre researchers, led by 探花系列 PhD candidate Dori Blakely, have used the James Webb Space Telescope to capture an unprecedented look at planet formation.