Chandra Public Lecture (Open to all)

Prof. Duncan Lorimer
West Virginia University

The Brightest Pulsars In The Universe

 Almost two decades ago a group at West Virginia University discovered the first example of a new cosmic phenomenon now known as fast radio bursts (FRBs). While the precise origins of FRBs are still unknown, they are likely to be linked to powerful events on or in the vicinity of neutron stars. FRBs are now being used as insightful probes of the large-scale structure of the Universe. In this talk, I recount the story of the discovery and highlight the role of serendipity in science while looking ahead to the future of this field.

Duncan Lorimer is an observational astronomer specializing in single-dish radio astronomy. Known for his contributions to pulsar astrophysics, and his role in the discovery of fast radio bursts, Lorimer’s main research interests involve understanding the underlying populations of both pulsars and fast radio bursts and using them as tools for Galactic astronomy and Cosmology.

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