Paul Fellows – Children of Another Sun

It is only in the last twenty years that we have been able to prove that the Sun is not unique in having a family of planets. This talk takes up the story of the discovery of planets beyond the solar system and described how we have gone about tracking down planets orbiting other stars (One of which Paul has found himself). How many planets are there out there? What are they like? How do we know? Then taking things a little further this talk brings the story of the search for life bang up to date with the latest thinking on this fascinating topic.

About me: Having built his first telescope aged 14 and experiencing the “wow” moment of seeing the rings of Saturn for the first time, he has been stargazing for some 40 years and has his own private observatory where he images the sky, taking pictures of galaxies, clusters, nebulae and planets. Many of his own images will appear in his talks.

((In normal times)) Paul co-presents the public observing evenings at the University of Cambridge, leading the live outdoor shows every week or giving indoor presentations when the clouds roll in! Either way these attract audiences of 200+ on a regular basis and are aimed to appeal to people of all levels from the complete beginner who wants to know where to start, yet hopefully adding something even for the more knowledgeable.

Paul holds a Master’s degree in natural sciences and a post-graduate diploma in computer science from the University of Cambridge, and is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology, A Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, and chairman of the Cambridge Astronomical Association.