Space science, and in particular meteor science, has always been my passion and I am happy to talk to Astronomy and non-Astronomy societies and groups on a range of topics.
- Meteors: an Observer’s Guide
This is an introductory talk suitable for both astronomy and non-astro groups, in which I cover what meteors and meteorites are, where they come from and why we’re interested in them, and I explain how best to observe them visually and with a camera, from your back garden. Finally, I talk a little about radio and video detection and the work we do in the UK and Global Meteor Networks. - The UK Meteor Network: a Decade of Video Detections
This talk focuses on the UK Meteor Network, better known as UKMON, one of the world’s largest video camera networks with around 250 cameras across the UK. I give a history of the network, how it has evolved, and how it works to determine trajectories and orbits of these tiny extraterrestrial objects. I discuss our work as part of the Global Meteor Network in more detail and about some of the discoveries that have been made with the data. - The Science of Meteor Detection
In this lecture I explain how we detect and analyse meteors, so that we can say where they came from, how they formed, and – sometimes! – where they landed. I begin by explaining a bit of the history of the study of meteors – and why meteorology is something different! – before looking at how the early attempts to measure meteor trajectories and work out what they’re made of have evolved into an advanced science which today allows us to identify meteorites from Mars and fireballs that have come from the furthest depths of space. Although this is a ‘sciencey’ topic, there are no equations and it is designed to be accessible to everyone. - Small Bodies of the Solar System
In this talk I cover everything from minor planets and moons right down to meteors and dust. I explain what they are, how they’re categorised, why they’re interesting to us, how we detect and monitor them and how you can observe them yourself. - Meteor-Wrongs and Other Scientific Blunders
A serious, but also tongue-in-cheek, look at some of the times scientists and others got things wrong. Everything from nonexistent stars and galaxies, to alien spacecraft, via Things Women Can’t Do, according to Eminent (male!) Scientists. And of course, I’ll talk about meteor-wrongs.
I originally gave this talk as the closing presentation at the SPA’s Preston Montford Weekend in 2021.