Clarington Public Libraries presents Black excellence in astronomy Zoom event

A PhD candidate at the University of Toronto’s Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics shares her passion for science and her journey from Nigeria to the GTA tonight as part of the Black Excellence in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) careers series.

The online Zoom presentation, which celebrates Black History Month and features Margaret Ikape, is presented in partnership with York/Durham public libraries, with (free) registration required. You can sign up for the event by calling any branch of the Clarington Public Library by phone at (905) 623-7322 x2712, or online.

While she was an undergraduate student at the only university in Nigeria that offered astronomy, Ikape attended a summer school in her home country in 2017 put on by the University of Toronto, where she looked into a solar telescope for the first time.

After graduating, Ikape came to Canada to further her studies and later went back to the U of T science camp (in Ghana this time) as an instructor, teaching students cosmology, the study of the Big Bang Theory.

Current research areas include studying the epoch of re-ionisation with the Simons observatory and mapping out the kinematics of nearby galaxies with a wide integral field infrared spectrograph called WIFIS.

Ikape also helps organise a mentorship program to connect students with professional astronomers around the world and one day hopes to return to Nigeria as a professor of astronomy.

The online ZOOM presentation will take place between 7 pm and 8 pm.