4th Edmund Weaver Lecture in Astronomy: It's About Time

Speaker: Professor Don Kurtz, Honorary Professor, University of Lincoln

Days, Weeks, Months, Years and more: Hear about Roman Emperors, Zulu Wars, Rider Haggard, Thomas Hardy, the English time riots, and how the days of the week got their names in an amusing and informative tour of the Western calendar.

About the Speaker

Don Kurtz is an accomplished astronomer with a distinguished career spanning several decades. Born in San Diego, California, he earned a BA in astronomy from San Diego State University and a PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. His career includes 24 years as a professor at the University of Cape Town, followed by roles at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in the UK, where he became Emeritus Professor in 2020. He is also an Extraordinary Professor at North-West University and an Honorary Professor at the University of Lincoln. Don is internationally recognised for his contributions to astronomy, particularly asteroseismology, and has published over 500 professional papers. He has discovered a class of pulsating, magnetic stars and co-authored the comprehensive textbook "Asteroseismology."

Don has served on numerous international committees, including as Vice-President of the Royal Astronomical Society, and has been invited to speak worldwide, giving talks to both professionals and the public. His research currently focuses on data from the Kepler and TESS Space Telescopes. He was awarded the Royal Astronomical Society’s 2022 Service Award.

Outside of academia, Don is an avid outdoorsman and has lectured at various adventure and travel venues. He divides his time between South Africa and the UK with his wife, June Kurtz.

Please register for this talk via the University of Lincoln webpage.