Astronomy on Tap Science Talk & Trivia

Check out Astronomy on Tap Triangle (AoTT), our North Carolina chapter of serving up short, engaging talks about astronomy over beer! For this tenth season of AoTT, we’ll be in Fullsteam-ATC’s beautiful new location at the Boiler Room at the historic American Tobacco Campus (ATC) in downtown Durham. Events will be held on the first Tuesday of the month and are free and open to the public.

Grab a drink (or two) and head to Fullsteam-ATC’s 100-seat theater for a night filled with astronomy, trivia, and fun. Free parking (after 5 PM) is available in the North and South Parking Decks surrounding the American Tobacco Campus. If an attendant asks for payment during a special event (e.g., baseball game), just let them know you’re there to visit Fullsteam Brewery, and they should wave you through.

“Dark Energy: A Mystery that Won’t Sit Still”

Prof. Georges Obied (UNC Chapel Hill)

Roughly two-thirds of the universe is made of something we can’t see, can’t touch, and can barely describe. We call it “dark energy,” and it’s driving the accelerating expansion of the cosmos, pushing the universe apart on the largest scales. Its story runs from what Einstein called his greatest blunder to one of the biggest surprises in the history of astronomy: in 1998, astronomers discovered that this expansion isn’t just continuing but speeding up. Now the DESI experiment has mapped tens of millions of galaxies, and when its data are combined with other measurements, hints emerge that this mysterious stuff may be evolving over time, perhaps even weakening. If true, this would rewrite the rulebook and leave the fate of the universe genuinely uncertain. Join us and UNC Assistant Professor Georges Obied at Fullsteam ATC for a tale of the strangest ingredient in the universe!