Science Happy Hour - The Accelerating Expanding Universe
The Accelerating Expanding Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and Einstein’s Cosmological Constant
Presenter: Dr. Bharat Ratra
Dark energy is the leading candidate for the mechanism that is responsible for causing the cosmological expansion to accelerate. Bharat Ratra will describe the astronomical data which persuade cosmologists that (as yet undetected) dark energy and dark matter are by far the main components of the energy budget of the universe at the present time. He will review how these observations have led to the development of a quantitative "standard" model of cosmology that describes the evolution of the universe from an early epoch of inflation to the complex hierarchy of structure seen today. In this non-technical talk, he will also discuss the basic physics, and the history of ideas, on which this model is based.
Dr. Bharat Ratra, distinguished professor of physics, specializes in cosmology and astroparticle physics, researching the universe’s structure and evolution. In 1988, he and Jim Peebles proposed the first dynamical dark energy model, a key concept in explaining the accelerating expansion of the universe and one of the most significant scientific discoveries of the last quarter of a century..
Ratra has mentored numerous students and fellows, published 151 scholarly works with over 21,000 citations, and given 100+ invited talks worldwide. His research has been supported by over $14 million in grants, primarily from the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.
He has received multiple honors, including the APS Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Prize (2025), the AAAS and APS fellowships, and awards for graduate mentorship and science communication. Actively involved in outreach, he supports science education programs for teachers and schools.
Ratra joined Kansas State University in 1996 after postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton, Caltech, and MIT. He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and a master’s from IIT New Delhi.
Wednesday, February 26th
Doors open at 5:30 PM for Happy Hour drinks
Talk begins at 6PM
Tickets are FREE for membership and $10 for non-members
The Accelerating Expanding Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and Einstein’s Cosmological Constant
Presenter: Dr. Bharat Ratra
Dark energy is the leading candidate for the mechanism that is responsible for causing the cosmological expansion to accelerate. Bharat Ratra will describe the astronomical data which persuade cosmologists that (as yet undetected) dark energy and dark matter are by far the main components of the energy budget of the universe at the present time. He will review how these observations have led to the development of a quantitative "standard" model of cosmology that describes the evolution of the universe from an early epoch of inflation to the complex hierarchy of structure seen today. In this non-technical talk, he will also discuss the basic physics, and the history of ideas, on which this model is based.
Dr. Bharat Ratra, distinguished professor of physics, specializes in cosmology and astroparticle physics, researching the universe’s structure and evolution. In 1988, he and Jim Peebles proposed the first dynamical dark energy model, a key concept in explaining the accelerating expansion of the universe and one of the most significant scientific discoveries of the last quarter of a century..
Ratra has mentored numerous students and fellows, published 151 scholarly works with over 21,000 citations, and given 100+ invited talks worldwide. His research has been supported by over $14 million in grants, primarily from the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.
He has received multiple honors, including the APS Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Prize (2025), the AAAS and APS fellowships, and awards for graduate mentorship and science communication. Actively involved in outreach, he supports science education programs for teachers and schools.
Ratra joined Kansas State University in 1996 after postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton, Caltech, and MIT. He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and a master’s from IIT New Delhi.
Wednesday, February 26th
Doors open at 5:30 PM for Happy Hour drinks
Talk begins at 6PM
Tickets are FREE for membership and $10 for non-members
The Accelerating Expanding Universe: Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and Einstein’s Cosmological Constant
Presenter: Dr. Bharat Ratra
Dark energy is the leading candidate for the mechanism that is responsible for causing the cosmological expansion to accelerate. Bharat Ratra will describe the astronomical data which persuade cosmologists that (as yet undetected) dark energy and dark matter are by far the main components of the energy budget of the universe at the present time. He will review how these observations have led to the development of a quantitative "standard" model of cosmology that describes the evolution of the universe from an early epoch of inflation to the complex hierarchy of structure seen today. In this non-technical talk, he will also discuss the basic physics, and the history of ideas, on which this model is based.
Dr. Bharat Ratra, distinguished professor of physics, specializes in cosmology and astroparticle physics, researching the universe’s structure and evolution. In 1988, he and Jim Peebles proposed the first dynamical dark energy model, a key concept in explaining the accelerating expansion of the universe and one of the most significant scientific discoveries of the last quarter of a century..
Ratra has mentored numerous students and fellows, published 151 scholarly works with over 21,000 citations, and given 100+ invited talks worldwide. His research has been supported by over $14 million in grants, primarily from the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.
He has received multiple honors, including the APS Julius Edgar Lilienfeld Prize (2025), the AAAS and APS fellowships, and awards for graduate mentorship and science communication. Actively involved in outreach, he supports science education programs for teachers and schools.
Ratra joined Kansas State University in 1996 after postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton, Caltech, and MIT. He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and a master’s from IIT New Delhi.
Wednesday, February 26th
Doors open at 5:30 PM for Happy Hour drinks
Talk begins at 6PM
Tickets are FREE for membership and $10 for non-members