Black Hole Weather: Light, Plasma, and the Edge of the Universe

On Mar 16th, we present : "Black Hole Weather: Light, Plasma, and the Edge of the Universe" by Prof. Bart Ripperda.

How do you observe something you can’t see?
For black holes, the answer is weather.

In this lecture, astrophysicist Dr. Bart Ripperda takes us to the edge of one of the universe’s most extreme environments. Black holes themselves emit no light — but the gas, plasma, and radiation swirling around their event horizons create spectacular and mysterious signals that scientists are only beginning to understand.

Guided by Einstein’s theory of relativity and the strange rules of quantum electrodynamics, this talk explores how black holes shine, how particles are accelerated to extreme energies, and why these regions produce signals across the electromagnetic spectrum — sometimes even accompanied by neutrinos, cosmic rays, or gravitational waves.

You’ll learn how researchers model the chaotic “weather systems” around black holes: accretion disks, jets, coronae, and magnetized plasma moving at relativistic speeds. By studying how and where this radiation is produced, scientists can probe physics that simply can’t be recreated on Earth — offering rare insights into the fundamental nature of space, time, and matter.

During his PhD, for which he won the EPS PhD Prize in Plasma Physics, Prof. Ripperda conducted award-winning research on extreme plasma processes that now underpin his work on black holes.

No background in physics required, come to this lecture with only your curiosity.

📅 Date: March 16, 2026
🕡 Time: 6:00 – 8:00 PM
📍 Location: Downtown Toronto (exact location revelaed in an email closer to the date)
🎤 Speaker: Prof. Bart Ripperda, PhD

🎟 Seats are limited! Early bird tickets available for a limited time.