The Quest for the First Stars and Black Holes

Understanding the nature of the first stars and the first population of black holes at cosmic dawn is one of most ambitious goals for modern astrophysics. Did you, for example, know that when matter accumulates around a supermassive black hole at the center of a galaxy—whose mass can exceed a billion times that of the Sun—it can become so bright that it outshines the light emitted by all stars in that galaxy? Since its launch two years ago, the James Webb Space Telescope has been revolutionising the field of astrophysics. Its sensitivity in detecting infrared light from the remotest parts of the Universe is orders of magnitude higher than any previous observatory, a historical technological leap that allows scientists to search for the first black holes in the early universe. In this year’s Blaauw Lecture, Professor of Experimental Astrophysics Roberto Maiolino will provide an overview of the extraordinary discoveries that have been made with the Webb telescope as well as those still to come. What secrets has the Webb telescope already revealed? Which new puzzles and frontiers of discovery has it opened? And how might these findings challenge existing theoretical models? 

Roberto Maiolino is Professor of Experimental Astrophysics at the Department of Physics (Cavendish Laboratory) and at the Kavli Institute for Cosmology, University of Cambridge, Honorary Professor at University College London and Royal Society Research Professor. His main area of research is the investigation of the formation and evolution of galaxies and supermassive black holes by using various observing facilities.

Blaauw Lecture
The Kapteyn Astronomical Institute organizes the yearly Blaauw lecture, in collaboration with Studium Generale. This is a lecture by an internationally renowned astronomer which everyone, including the general public, can attend. The Blaauw chair and Blaauw lecture were initiated in 1997 as one of six visiting professorships in the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.

Are you not able to attend the lecture? Watch the livestream here!