Channel: Gresham College

Category: Education

Tags: educationlondoncomic microwave backgroundjeremiah horrockscosmologyhenrietta leavittdebatehubblehubble space telescopevenuspublicacademialeavitt's lawhipparchusphysicskeplerlectureedmund halleyknowledgeheliometermessier 107astronomyhubble-lemaitre constantsh0esnasaesamoongreshamgresham collegefort venus

Description: Measuring distances to astronomical objects outside our Galaxy is a surprisingly hard challenge: it wasn't until 1923 that Edwin Hubble obtained proof that Andromeda is indeed a galaxy in its own right. Today, astronomers extend distance measurements in the cosmos to the edge of the visible Universe, building up a 'cosmic distance ladder' made of several rungs. This talk will explore a major conundrum of contemporary astronomy: as observations have become more precise, the distance ladder appears today to be broken. A lecture by Roberto Trotta The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/cosmic-distance Gresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: gresham.ac.uk/support Website: gresham.ac.uk Twitter: twitter.com/greshamcollege Facebook: facebook.com/greshamcollege Instagram: instagram.com/greshamcollege