Lecture to Highlight Meteorites

Rev. Guy J. Consolmagno, S.J., of the Vatican Observatory at Castel Gandolfo in Rome, gives the 31st Annual Karl F. Herzfeld Memorial Lecture, which is titled "The Matter of Meteorites - And Why It Matters." Meteorites are rocks fallen from space, most dating from the earliest ages of the solar system. Father Consolmagno will talk about pioneering studies at the Vatican Observatory of meteorite density, porosity, magnetic susceptibility, thermal conductivity, and heat capacity that have been crucial to society's understanding of asteroid structure and evolution, with implications for how the solar system was formed. But in fact, none of those goals were in mind when the measurements began. Why was the role of the Vatican so crucial to these studies? What does this tell society about the bigger questions of how, and why, science is done? The lecture honors a scientist who served as chair of Catholic University's physics department from 1936 until 1961. Born in Vienna in 1892, Herzfeld completed his doctoral studies at the University of Vienna and studied with Albert Einstein in Zurich in 1914. After stepping down as CUA's physics chair, he continued to teach until 1970, and was active professionally until his death in 1978. In addition to his many research interests, Herzfeld was a scholar of philosophy and theology, contributing many scholarly articles on the relationship between the humanities and science. As the beloved professor of hundreds of students, he had a profound impact on both the professional and spiritual aspects of their lives. The lecture is free and open to the public. A reception will follow. For more information, call 202-319-5315 or visit http://physics.cua.edu. To request disability accommodations, email hershey@cua.edu.