‘Dark matter’ discoverer, pioneering astronomer to give seminar series lecture

CHAPEL HILL -- Dr. Vera C. Rubin, an observational astronomer credited with proving the existence of "dark matter," will be the featured speaker for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor’s Science Seminar Series Nov. 18.

Rubin has devoted her professional career to the study of motions of gas and stars in galaxies and motions of galaxies in the universe. Her research has played a significant role in uncovering previously unknown features of the universe. The free public lecture, titled "Bright Beacons and Dark Mysteries of the Universe," will be held at 7 p.m. in Hill Hall auditorium.

The Chancellor’s Science Seminar Series, sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences, is designed to spotlight the work of world-renowned investigators in the basic and applied sciences, and enhance the public’s awareness of the relevance of these scientific discoveries to their daily lives.

"We are thrilled to have a pioneering scientist of Dr. Rubin’s stature to share her insights about our galaxies and the mysteries of dark matter," said Dr. Richard Soloway, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. "Her extraordinary career should be an inspiration to young women and men

considering careers in science, and we look forward to her lecture with real excitement."

Rubin’s examination of the orbital velocities of gas and stars in galaxies showed that stars and gas are moving in response not to the gravitational field of the matter that can be seen but principally to the gravitational attraction of matter that is invisible ("dark matter").

The universe contains at least five times as much dark matter as normal matter such as atoms, and scientists are learning more about the distribution of dark matter throughout space. However, there is still no understanding of its composition, even after 25 years of study. It is one of the key questions in physics and astrophysics.

Earlier, as a master’s degree student, Rubin had questioned whether there are large-scale motions of clusters of galaxies, in addition to the general expansion of the universe. The study of large-scale motions in the universe now has become a major field of extragalactic research.

Rubin received her bachelor of arts degree from Vassar College, her master of arts degree from Cornell University and her doctorate from Georgetown University. Her thesis adviser was Dr. George Gamow, world-renowned for his investigations within cosmology and for his pioneering theories concerning DNA proteins.

In 1965, Rubin was the first woman permitted to observe at Palomar Observatory. That same year, after 10 years as a research astronomer and assistant professor of astronomy at Georgetown University, she joined the Carnegie Institution of Washington’s Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, where she is a senior fellow today.

Rubin is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and has been a distinguished visiting astronomer at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile and a Chancellor’s distinguished professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Among her many awards are honorary doctor of science degrees from Harvard and Yale universities, the International Gruber Prize for Cosmology and the Bruce Medal of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.

In 1993, then-President Bill Clinton awarded Rubin the National Medal of Science. She received the Gold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (London) in 1996, the first woman so honored since Caroline Herschel received it in 1828.

In Vera Rubin’s household, science is a family affair. Her husband, Dr. Robert Rubin, is a mathematical physicist-biophysicist. They have four children, each with a doctorate in science.

The Nov. 18 lecture is made possible by funding from UNC’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development.

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Photo note: To download a photo of Rubin, click on www.unc.edu/news/pics/event/lecture/rubin_vera.jpg

College of Arts and Sciences contact: Dee Reid, (919) 843-6339 or deereid@unc.edu
News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu