Explore the Milky Way and Black Holes in Sci-Port’s IMAX® Dome Theatre

NASA’s Chandra X-Ray Exhibit to Feature Special Zoom Program of Scientists and Astronomers

Special FREE Program:  Thursday, July 29, 2021; Presentation 10:00am – 11:00am; Q&A until 11:30a

Space IS the final frontier and you’ll be able to discover a bit more of it with a special free event happening at Sci-Port Discovery Center! An hour-long presentation on July 29th will feature:

-Robert Champion, former Director of the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans and current Director of Center Operations at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

-Helen Cole, Chandra X-Ray Observatory Program Manager with the topic of “Design, Build and Launch of the Chandra X-Ray Observatory”,

-Kim Arcand, Chandra X-Ray Observatory Visualization Scientist and Emerging Tech Lead who will present “Exploring Chandra Universe Through Sight, Sound and Touch”,

-Steven Ehlert, Chandra X-Ray Observatory Astronomer, and his topic of “The Lives of Black Holes as Observed by Chandra”.

Until fall 2022, Sci-Port is the home of the Chandra X-Ray Observatory exhibit, on loan from NASA. Launched aboard the space shuttle

Columbia on July 23, 1999, Chandra is NASA’s flagship telescope for X-ray astronomy and one of the agency’s Great Observatories (along with the Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer Space Telescope).

Chandra was designed to explore the hottest, most turbulent regions of the universe such as exploded stars, colliding galaxy clusters, and swirling matter around black holes.  Year after year, Chandra continues to help astronomers discover the secrets of the cosmos and the  objects within it. A selection of images, currently on display at Sci-Port, includes the first X-ray image taken by Chandra of the supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A* (located in the center of our Milky Way galaxy).

Visitors to Sci-Port and local residents will get a rare first-hand chance to interact with NASA scientists and astronomers as they discuss the Chandra X-Ray Observatory and its findings. The presentation will be held in Sci-Port’s IMAX® Dome Theatre on Thursday, July 29 at 10 a.m. and via the Zoom platform.

“Our nation is experiencing a renewed interest in space exploration and astronomy.  We want to offer participants an opportunity to interact with the scientists, engineers and administrators who are directly connected to the Chandra X-Ray Observatory and NASA space exploration,” states Dianne Clark, Executive Director of Sci-Port Discovery Center.

What/Where:  FREE Presentation in Sci-Port’s IMAX® Dome Theatre and Zoom for the first 100 registrants.  

When: Jul 29, 2021, 10:00 AM Central Time (US and Canada)

Registration is required in advance for this meeting. Go to:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAscuitqDMtEt0ANV_Vyhr_PTaOJpAel41O

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email and information about joining the meeting.