Becky Smethurst

Becky Smethurst discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Dr Becky Smethurst is a Royal Astronomical Society Research Fellow at the University of Oxford. She is the star of astronomy-themed You Tube channel Dr Becky. Her current research is trying to answer the question, “How do galaxies and black holes evolve together?” Her latest book is A Brief History of Black Holes.

1. Black holes are neither “black” nor “holes” https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/dr-becky-smethurst/a-brief-history-of-black-holes/9781529086706

2. Annie Jump Cannon https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annie_Jump_Cannon

3. The same algorithm that identifies stars also identifies individual whale sharks https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/star-mapping-algorithms-track-endangered-animals

4. The dark sky sights of the UK https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/best-dark-sky-sites-uk

5. You can measure the speed of light with a microwave https://www.open.edu/openlearn/science-maths-technology/science/physics-and-astronomy/physics/measure-the-speed-light-your-microwave

6. The "black hole of Calcutta" prison is where black holes get their name from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Hole_of_Calcutta

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