UW lecture series will focus on “Extreme Worlds”

A three-lecture series that explores life around hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor off the Washington-British Columbia coast and the possibility of life on Jupiter’s moons will be held on three consecutive Thursdays in November.

The lectures, sponsored by the Washington NASA Space Grant Consortium, are open to the public and will be held from
6:30 to 8 p.m. in 147 Architecture Hall on the UW Seattle campus. Cost is $15 for the entire series. To register, call the Space Grant office, (206) 543-1943.

NOV. 5: Rocks, Fluids and Life at Seafloor Hot Springs
Oceanography Professor Deborah Kelley will discuss recent findings at the Juan de Fuca Ridge, where scientists this summer recovered sulfide “chimneys” containing unusual life forms.

NOV. 12: The Galileo Mission to the Jupiter System: Results and Surprises
Geological sciences Professor Tony Irving, a former NASA scientist, will discuss the latest results from the Galileo mission, including the newest discovery in October that the moon Callisto could contain an ocean beneath surface ice.

NOV. 19: The Prospects for Life on Europa
Oceanography Professor John Delaney will discuss the possibility of finding microbial life on Europa, another of Jupiter’s frigid moons, which also shows evidence of volcanic activity and an ice-covered ocean. ¶