At the end of “Star Wars: Episode IV,” the Death Star orbits the moon Yavin IV while seeking to target the rebel base on its surface. This maneuver takes long enough that Luke Skywalker is able to destroy the celestial juggernaut in the nick of time. Was this delay scientifically reasonable? The answer lies in […]

Astronomers run some of the largest simulations on the world's most powerful supercomputers. These simulations trace the formation of galaxies and cosmic structures on scales of billions of light years from shortly after the Big Bang to the present day. In this talk, Dr. Johannes Lange will discuss why astronomers are running these large-scale simulations […]