Marin Science Seminar Presentation: “Why Are There Stars?” On a clear night, the sky is filled with countless stars. Our Sun is one of them. How do these objects form? In recent decades, astronomers have begun answering this very old question. This progress has occurred despite the fact that the youngest stars are invisible to the eye and even to most telescopes. Along the way, we have learned how planets like the Earth are created as part of the stellar birth process. (February 24, 2010) Get the flyer here.

Dr. Steven Stahler is an astrophysicist at U. C. Berkeley. Raised in Maryland, he attended graduate school at UC-Berkeley in physics. He was a professor at MIT before returning to the Bay Area in 1992. His research centers on the problem of star formation, and he recently coauthored the first comprehensive textbook in the field (“The Formation of Stars,” Stahler & Palla, Wiley-VCH, 2004). Trained as a theoretical physicist, Steve especially delights in the esthetic aspect of his research, which he tries to convey in his numerous public talks.