MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University Department of Physics and Astronomy lecturer Rob Mahurin will discuss “Inconstant as the Northern Star” during the next MTSU Star Party.
Mahurin’s talk will start at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 4 in Room 102 of Wiser-Patten Science Hall. It is the third of four Star Parties during the spring 2025 semester.
All Star Parties are free and open to the public and children are welcome. The format is a 45- to 60-minute lecture followed by a telescope viewing at the nearby MTSU Observatory, weather permitting.
Typically held on the first Friday of the month during the semester, the Physics and Astronomy Friday Star Parties feature an assortment of interesting astronomy and physics topics from veteran faculty members.
“Through most of history, we have considered the skies to be fundamentally unchanging, with only rare and exciting exceptions,” Mahurin said in giving an overview of his talk. “In modern times, we know differently.
“The apparent constancy of the skies is an illusion brought about by the brevity of the human life. Again and again, we discover that some property of our universe which we believed to be constant is in fact changing. The ‘fixed’ stars move with respect to the Earth and with respect to each other, as they age from birth to death.”
Mahurin said some, including Caesar’s northern star, vary in size and brightness over short intervals; even the shape of empty space seems to have changed over the history of the universe.
“This talk will show how the discoveries of these different changes are interconnected and will describe some opportunities for casual observers to watch the skies evolve over a period as brief as a single night — perhaps even with the naked eye,” he added.
The final Star Party will be Friday, May 2, with professor Chuck Higgins discussing “Don’t Forget Canus Major, ‘Fixed and Consequent.’”
Free parking after 4:30 p.m. can be found in the Judd-Sims lot or James E. Walker Library lot and other nearby lots located on the north side of Alumni Drive between North Baird Lane and Womack Lane.
For more information about Physics and Astronomy, one of 11 College of Basic and Applied Sciences departments, call 615-898-2130.
— Randy Weiler (Randy.Weiler@mtsu.edu)
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