Alumnus to discuss today his study of matter, forces that expand the universe

By JENNIFER PALMBERG

At 13,700 feet above sea level, at the top of Mauna Kea in Hilo Hawaii, the quest to solve the mysteries of the universe begins.

James R. Kennedy, associate director of operations at the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii, and a Fresno State alumnus, will speak as part of the University Lecture Series today at 7:30 p.m. in the Satellite Student Union.

Kennedy and several other scientists study the dark matter and dark forces that cause the universe to expand, the presence of water within the universe and the chemical elements that first formed the universe.

“The way we picture the universe has changed over time,” Kennedy said. “Old ideas have been discarded and new ideas have led us down a different road. Our understanding of the universe has changed dramatically in just the past few years, and new discoveries have had us studying things we couldn’t even have imagined just a few years earlier.”

The Gemini Observatory consists of twin, 8-meter telescopes located in northern Hilo and the southern Chilean Andes. These two locations make it possible to see the entire sky. Six countries financially support the facility; the United States covers 51 percent of that funding.

Kennedy, who received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics from Fresno State, said he has been fascinated with astronomy ever since he was a boy.

He said he hopes to reveal some of the observatory’s most recent discoveries and explain what the focus of the observatory will be for the next five years during the speech.

“I titled my speech ‘There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy,’ ” Kennedy said, “It’s a quote from Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet.’ It struck me as very appropriate because there really are more things on heaven and earth than man has ever philosophized about. Nature continues to surprise us.”