Leading astronomer Professor Stephen Smartt from Queen’s Astrophysics Research Centre (ARC)  is hosting a series of live video lessons for children aged 8-12.

We’re proud that Queen’s staff are going above and beyond to support our students and the wider community during the coronavirus pandemic.

Take Professor Stephen Smartt, who is set to host a series of live video lessons for school children via his Smartt Science channel starting this month. Tune in every Tuesday morning at 11 o’clock from May to explore space science with a leading expert in the night sky.

Professor Smartt is no ordinary science teacher: as a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) 2020, he is recognised alongside Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Dorothy Hodgkin and Stephen Hawking for his scientific endeavour.  

A global pioneer, Professor Smartt discovered the stars that explode as supernovae for the first time using the Hubble Space Telescope. He uncovered evidence that very massive stars can either collapse quietly to form black holes or produce the most luminous explosions in the Universe. He also led one of the teams that detected the source of gravitational waves, showing that merging neutron stars produce the heaviest radioactive elements in the periodic table.

Who better to teach your budding star-gazers about the planets and our solar system?

Speaking of the election to Fellow, Professor Smartt said: “

I am honoured and delighted to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society. In science, we work in a global arena. It is a huge privilege to join other scientific giants who have been appointed to the Society over the years, in recognition of my work and the level of scientific achievement at Queen’s. Science impacts on all our lives, no more so than at present, and I look forward to progressing the Society’s purpose of promoting excellence in science and using it for the benefit of humanity.”

Visit Smart Science to learn more.

School of Mathematics and Physics