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Gamma-ray bursts subject of tonight's Astronomy Days lecture at museum

The third in the Bradbury Science Museum's Astronomy Days series of talks is this evening. At 7 p.m., Ed Fenimore will discuss "Gamma-ray Bursts: The Most Amazing Events in the Universe." The lecture will center on the wonders of gamma-ray bursts, how scientists at the Lab are able to study them, and how Los Alamos has been at the center of gamma-ray bursts starting with their discovery in 1973.

Fenimore is a Laboratory Fellow and team leader of Astrophysics and Radiation Measurement (ISR-2). Except for a six-month visiting professorship at the Japanese Institute of Space and Astronautical Science in Tokyo, Fenimore has worked at the Laboratory since 1978. He has won the Los Alamos Distinguished Performance Award five times, the Los Alamos Distinguished Mentor Award and was appointed a Fellow of the Laboratory in 1998.

Astronomy Days continues next week with Rene Reifarth of Neutron and Nuclear Science (LANSCE-3) discussing "Origin of the Elements" at 7 p.m., Monday, June 21; followed by Tom Vestrand of ISR-1 talking about "Robotic Telescopes" at 7 p.m., Wednesday, June 23; and Herb Funsten of the Center for Space Science and Exploration (ISR-CSSE) discussing "The Heliosphere" at 7 p.m., on Thursday, June 24.

Astronomy Days and its lectures help support the Laboratory's hosting of the Earthwatch Institute's Student Challenge Awards Program entitled "Transient Phenomena in Astrophysics." This program brings eight high-school students from around the country to Los Alamos for two weeks to be exposed to aspects of research in astrophysics.

The Bradbury Science Museum is part of the Public Affairs Office. It is located at 15th Street and Central Avenue in Los Alamos. Museum hours, apart from the special events listed above, are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday and 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Sunday and Monday. There is no admission fee to attend museum events.

For more information, call Pat Berger at the museum at 5-0896.

--Brenna Moore

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