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DR. JAYMIE MATTHEWS
Electromagnetic spectrum
Vancouver, B.C.
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Dr. Jaymie Matthews is an Associate Professor of Astronomy in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of British Columbia.
He is a leading expert in the field of stellar seismology: literally using the vibrations of the Sun and other stars to probe their hidden interiors and histories.
To detect the subtle signatures of these `ringing' stars, Dr. Matthews has observed with some of the world's largest telescopes on remote mountaintops in Hawaii, Chile, Mexico, Texas, Australia and Russia.
Dr. Matthews is also Mission Scientist for the MOST Space Telescope Project, to study Microvariability & Oscillations of STars.
The suitcase-sized MOST microsatellite, launched from Russia in June 2003, is Canada's first space observatory, and Dr. Matthews affectionately calls it the "Humble Space Telescope" because of its modest size and budget.
MOST will give us clues to the age of the Universe and the future of our Sun, and will be poised to give humans a first glimpse of reflected light from a planet outside our Solar System.
In addition to the MOST Project, Dr. Matthews sits on Canada's scientific steering committees for the international Gemini Twin 8-mTelescopes Project and the Far-Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer satellite.
He is a member of the International Astronomical Union's Commission on Variable Stars, and a frequent invited review speaker at meetings around the world.
(His 2002 speaking itinerary included Washington, D.C.; Porto, Portugal; Vienna, Austria; Cancun, Mexico; and Mmabatho, South Africa.)
Because of his research on stars and space technology, Dr. Matthews is intimately familiar with the physics of light.
However, that wouldn't be much use to the television audience if he can't explain those ideas in understandable words of less than four syllables.
Fortunately, astronomy education, public outreaches and clear communication are important facets of Dr. Matthews' scientific career.
He sits on the Board of Vancouver's H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, and won a 1999 Killam Prize for teaching excellence in the UBC Faculty of Science, as well as the 2002 Teaching Prize of the Canadian Association of Physicists.
Macleans magazine identified Dr. Matthews as one of UBC's "hot profs".
He also makes frequent appearances on television and radio to explain the latest news in astronomy to the general public.
