From Melbourne to Mars: The Hunt for Life in Space
Part of National Science Week
- What
- PLANETARIUM
- When
- General information
- Ages 10+
- Tickets
Hear the latest update on Mars with Dr Adrian Brown, Deputy Program Scientist on NASA’s Perseverance Mission. This live planetarium session will be hosted by Dr Tanya Hill, with Dr Adrian Brown appearing on-screen from Washington D.C., USA.
Dr Adrian Brown is a planetary scientist working at NASA’s Headquarters in Washington D.C. He will join us live from America to share his story of growing up in Melbourne and making it to NASA.
As the Deputy Program Scientist on NASA’s latest mission to Mars, Dr Brown will update us on NASA’s search for signs of ancient life on Mars.
For the past three years, the Perseverance Rover has been exploring Jezero crater, together with its mini-helicopter, Ingenuity, the first aircraft to fly on another planet.
Dr Brown is working on an ambitious mission that will one day bring carefully selected Martian rocks and soil back here to Earth so they can be better studied and examined for signs of Martian life.
Bios
Dr Adrian Brown
Dr Adrian Brown grew up in Melbourne and completed his PhD in Earth and Planetary Science at Macquarie University, Sydney. He studied some of Earth’s oldest rocks in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Since moving to the USA in 2006, Dr Brown uses his expertise gained by studying Australian rock formations to better understand Martian rocks and improve our search for life beyond Earth.
Dr Tanya Hill
Dr Tanya Hill is the Melbourne Planetarium's Astronomer. She completed her PhD at the University of Sydney, searching for supermassive black holes in the heart of very distant galaxies. She loves exploring the universe and it never fails to amaze her.
