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Sun, May 04, 2025 02:14 PM All times are UTC

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Brad E Tucker

Astrophysicist/Cosmologist, Australian National University
I am an Astrophysicist/Cosmologist, and currently a Fellow at the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Mt Stromlo Observatory and Senior Lecturer at the National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science at the Australian National University.

I have my hand in a variety of things, but the majority of my work involves exploding stars called supernova, and cosmology, the study of the universe. A certain type of supernova, called a type Ia, can be used as a standard candle that can trace our universe's history.

For this work, I am involved with a number of supernova surveys. I have been working on the ESSENCE Project, The CfA Supernova Search, The Carnegie Supernova Project and also using Mt Stromlo's new SkyMapper telescope. I am one of the leads of the Kepler Extra-Galactic Survey, KEGS, a Kepler Space Telescope Key Program, to understand why and how stars blow. I am leading a project to build a network of ultraviolet telescopes in the upper atmosphere which are being built at Mt Stromlo.

In addition to research, I frequently give talks to school groups and the general public about astronomy and have regular segments on various radio stations talking about astronomy news and events.

Among other things, I have developed a series of astronomy coins in conjunction with the Royal Australian Mint, consulted on science fiction movies, advised on astronomy-themed art projects, and have been featured in specials on the National Geographic Channel.

I am currently in the process of writing my first popular book and producing a Massive Open Online Course.

Space Science Series

Only 100 years ago the Milky Way was visible from central Paris. Here’s how we can get the night sky back

Aug 12, 2024 06:03 am UTC| Science

For the more than 100,000 years humans have been on Earth, we have looked up at night and seen the stars and our celestial home, the Milky Way galaxy. Cultures all around the world have stories and records incorporating...

Space Science Series

Why is the universe ripping itself apart? A new study of exploding stars shows dark energy may be more complicated than we thought

Jan 09, 2024 23:06 pm UTC| Science

What is the universe made of? This question has driven astronomers for hundreds of years. For the past quarter of a century, scientists have believed normal stuff like atoms and molecules that make up you, me, Earth,...

Economy

Russia’s MOEX Index Falls as Oil, Mining, and Telecom Stocks Decline

Russian stocks closed lower on Saturday, with the MOEX Russia Index dropping 2.80%, weighed down by sharp declines in the Mining, Oil Gas, and Telecom sectors. Among the top gainers, PIK SHb PJSC (MCX:PIKK) rose 1.43% to...

July Now Favored for First Fed Rate Cut After Strong April Jobs Report

A stronger-than-expected April jobs report has shifted trader expectations for the first Federal Reserve rate cut of 2025 from June to July. The U.S. added 177,000 jobs last month, beating forecasts of 138,000. The...

Gold Edges Higher as Dollar Dips Ahead of U.S. Jobs Data

Gold prices gained in Asian trading on Friday as a weaker U.S. dollar lifted demand, though overall gains were capped amid easing trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $3,255.95 per ounce, while...

Japan Hints U.S. Treasury Holdings Could Be Trade Negotiation Leverage

Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato suggested on Friday that the countrys vast holdings of U.S. Treasuriesexceeding $1 trillioncould potentially be used as leverage in trade talks with the United States. While Kato...

Asian Stocks, US Futures Rise on Hopes for US-China Trade Talks

Asian stock markets and U.S. futures rose on Friday amid renewed optimism over potential U.S.-China trade talks, offsetting investor concerns following weak earnings from Apple and Amazon. Chinas commerce ministry said...

Politics

Australia’s Labor Party Secures Second Term Amid U.S.-China Trade War Concerns

Australias center-left Labor Party, led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, secured a historic second consecutive term, marking the first such victory in two decades. With projections indicating the party will increase its...

Singapore’s PAP Wins 14th Term, Secures Strong Mandate for PM Lawrence Wong

Singapores ruling Peoples Action Party (PAP) has secured a resounding victory in the nations general election, winning 87 of 97 parliamentary seats. This marks the PAPs 14th consecutive win, extending its uninterrupted...

Appeals Court Halts Ruling to Reinstate Voice of America Staff Amid Trump-Era Shutdown

A U.S. federal appeals court has blocked a lower courts ruling that ordered the Trump administration to reinstate over 1,000 Voice of America (VOA) employees and resume suspended broadcasts. The 2-1 decision on Saturday...

Trump Sparks Backlash with AI Pope Image Amid Vatican Conclave

President Donald Trump drew criticism after posting an AI-generated image of himself dressed as the pope on Truth Social. The controversial image, uploaded just days before the Catholic Churchs cardinal conclave to elect a...

Sheinbaum Rejects Trump’s Proposal to Deploy U.S. Troops in Mexico

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum firmly rejected a proposal from U.S. President Donald Trump to deploy American troops to Mexico to combat drug cartels, citing national sovereignty. The proposal came during recent...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

TikTok Fined €530M Over EU Data Privacy Violations, Faces China Data Transfer Suspension

TikTok has been hit with a 530 million ($600 million) fine by Irelands Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), its lead EU privacy regulator, over violations of the European Unions data protection rules. The DPC cited concerns...

Spotify Updates App After Apple Antitrust Ruling, Targets Subscription Link Access

Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) has submitted an updated version of its iOS app to Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) featuring an external link for subscription purchases, following a U.S. court ruling that found Apple violated a previous antitrust...

Apple Faces $900M Tariff Hit, Shifts iPhone Production to India

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) expects U.S. tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump to add $900 million in costs this quarter, CEO Tim Cook revealed during the companys earnings call on Thursday. The announcement led to a...

Microsoft Stock Soars on Strong Azure Growth and AI Momentum

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) surged 7% in after-hours trading after reporting stronger-than-expected Q3 results, driven by robust growth in its Azure cloud business and rising demand for AI services. Azure revenue grew 33% in...

Amazon Launches Nova Premier AI to Compete with GPT-4o and Gemini

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has unveiled Nova Premier, its most advanced artificial intelligence model to date, at the AWS re:Invent conference, signaling a bold push into the competitive generative AI market. Delivered through...