The Study of Stars
Stars come in all shapes and sizes: Big powerful blue stars, small yet feisty red stars, strange pulsating yellow stars, and more. How do we know so much about stars? How did we go from seeing tiny points of light in the sky to knowing about red giants and supernovae? In this talk, intended for a general audience, Dr. Alexandra Yep returns to the observatory to share insights into stars and the tools astronomers employ to comprehend them.
Alex Yep is a poet turned astronomer. After earning her BFA in creative writing from Emerson College in Boston, MA, she jumped into the sciences, earning her MS in physics from California State University, Northridge, in 2016 and her Ph.D. in astronomy from Georgia State University in 2021. Dr. Yep now works as a visiting professor at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, GA, where she teaches physics and astronomy, researches young star clusters, and directs the Bradley Observatory.
Dr. Yep again graced our summer STEM Space Camp with her presence as a speaker. We were also honored to host her Ph.D. dissertation defense in 2021. Notably, as part of her research, she made groundbreaking discoveries, identifying several star clusters within the Gum Nebula. These clusters have since been named Yep-1, Yep-2, and Yep-3, making Dr. Yep the second woman to receive this prestigious honor.
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