12–1 pm: Opening Reception and Lunch
1–2 pm: “Flying High to Catch Neutrinos and Other Extreme Particles,” a talk by Provost Angela V. Olinto
What can neutrinos and cosmic rays teach us about the most powerful processes in the universe?
Researchers are flying ultra-fast cameras on NASA science balloons to help answer that question, observing extremely energetic subatomic particles, including neutrinos and cosmic rays, arriving from the deepest corners of the cosmos. Over the past decades, these scientific instruments have evolved to combine different types of observations, allowing researchers to learn more from these particles and better understand the extreme events that produce them.
In this talk, Angela V. Olinto, Provost and Rutherfurd Professor of Columbia University and a leading astrophysicist, will describe her work related to earlier balloon projects that helped develop this technology, and look ahead to a planned balloon flight in 2028, which promises to deepen our understanding of the powerful processes that shape our universe.
Angela V. Olinto, Rutherfurd Professor of Astronomy, Professor of Physics, and Provost of Columbia University, is the University’s chief academic officer, guiding strategic academic priorities including cross-school initiatives and the oversight of schools, institutes, and academic resources. A distinguished astrophysicist, she is renowned for her pioneering work on neutron stars, cosmic magnetic fields, cosmic inflation theory, and the origin of the highest energy cosmic particles, serving as Principal Investigator of major international space missions such as POEMMA and EUSO. Prior to joining Columbia in 2024, she was Dean of Physical Sciences and Albert A. Michelson Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago, where she also chaired the department of Astronomy and Astrophysics. Olinto is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, and has received numerous honors, including the Brazilian Order of Rio Branco medal. She holds a BS in Physics from Pontifícia Universidade Católica of Rio de Janeiro and a PhD in Physics from MIT.
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