Special IAU-G2 Seminar Celebrating Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin’s Centennial Thesis: December 1st (Monday!) at 16:00 CET

[Sergio Simon Diaz]

Hola!

Kind reminder about this special seminar in about 1 month, now also promoted by the IAU-G5 commission! Do not forget to note it in your agendas! 

Also, feel free to distribute the announcement among your institutions to reach as many interested people as possible :-)

Cheers

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Next December 1st (Monday!) at 16:00 CET, the IAU-G2 Commission on Massive Stars, together with the IAU-G5 commission on Stellar and planetary Atmospheres are delighted to host a special seminar featuring Dr. Floor Broekgaarden (University of California San Diego). This event celebrates the centennial of Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin’s PhD thesis—a landmark achievement in astrophysics.

We warmly invite the entire community to join us in commemorating and celebrating this milestone. Payne-Gaposchkin’s thesis was famously described by Otto Struve as “the most brilliant PhD thesis ever written in astronomy.”

Following Floor’s talk, we will host an extended Q&A session, hoping that many senior members of our community will share their perspectives on the enduring importance of Cecilia’s groundbreaking work.

While this seminar was initially part of the IAU-G2 online conference series, an initiative that offers a platform to explore recent advances in massive star research and to connect with colleagues around the world -- from the newest generation of researchers to our most experienced members -- the IAU-G5 commission has recently warmly joined us in promoting this special seminar. 

Connection details below and also at https://massivestars.org/seminars/

The IAU Commissions G2 on Massive Stars and G5 on Stellar and Planetary Atmospheres

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*Title:* What Stars Are Made Of: Celebrating One Hundred Years of Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin's Revolutionary PhD Thesis

*Speaker:* Floor Broekgaarden (University of California San Diego)

*Organizer:* IAU G2 and G5 commissions

*Date & Time:* December 1st - 16:00 CET (MONDAY!!!)

*Connection details:* https://rediris.zoom.us/j/6313376939?pwd=akRrd2dmb3dnbDN0MmRCallTTHlLQT09&omn=95383862762

*Abstract:* A century ago, Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin's PhD thesis, Stellar Atmospheres (1925, Harvard College Observatory), transformed our understanding of the universe. Famously described by Otto Struve as "the most brilliant PhD thesis ever written in astronomy", Payne-Gaposchkin's work revealed that stars are composed primarily of hydrogen and helium\u2014an insight that overturned the prevailing belief that stars shared Earth's composition.

In this talk, we invite you to celebrate the centennial of this landmark achievement and to reflect on the courage, creativity, and intellectual clarity that defined Cecilia\u2019s science. Together, we will revisit her thesis, explore original figures and passages, and demystify the key ideas that made her conclusions so revolutionary. Presented in the spirit of Payne-Gaposchkin's clarity and curiosity, this session is designed to engage both seasoned astronomers and those newly entering the field.