KENNEBUNK — On Wednesday, Aug. 2 at 6 p.m. (previously scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 1) Kennebunk Free Library will welcome Professor Ian Durham from the Astronomical Society of Northern New England to present on what experts are calling “the astronomical event of the decade.”
On Aug. 21, the continental U.S. will see its first solar eclipse in almost 40 years, the first to fully cross the country since 1918. Though the path of totality will be south of us, here in Kennebunk we
will still be treated to a 60 percent partial eclipse.
Professor Durham will speak about why eclipses happen, different kinds of eclipses, how to
view them safely, and what Kennebunk can expect during the “Great American Eclipse.”
The library will have free eclipse-viewing glasses available to take home.
Durham is Professor and Chair of the Department of Physics at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire.
His research focuses on relativistic quantum information and the foundations of physics and
mathematics. In particular, he is interested in the “big questions.’’
As such, he is a member of the John Templeton Foundation-funded Foundational Questions Institute (FQXi) and is the founding editor of The Quantum Times, which is a publication of the American Physical Society’s Division of Quantum Information (DQI).
He recently completed a three-year term as Secretary-Treasurer of DQI, the world’s largest
organization dedicated to quantum information and quantum computing.
Durham is currently serving as Treasurer of the Kennebunk-based Astronomical Society of Northern New England (ASNNE), of which he has been a member for 15 years. He lives in Kennebunk with his wife, kids, and dog where he enjoys fly fishing, softball and other pursuits in
his spare time.
A large turnout is expected and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis so please plan to arrive early.
Additional parking is available at Kennebunk Savings Bank after their operational hours.
This program is free and wheelchair accessible.
The Kennebunk Free Library is at 112 Main St. in Kennebunk, Maine.
For more information, call 985-2173 or visit www.kennebunklibrary.org.
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