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Tides throughout the Universe

May 7, 2026
20:00 EST

Room 102, McLennan Physical Laboratories, 255 Huron St
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

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Credit: Hubble Legacy Archive, ESA, NASA, Bill Snyder

Talk Abstract

If you've ever spent a day at the beach, watching the water slowly creep in and then back out, you've experienced a tidal phenomenon. But the rising and falling of a shoreline on Earth is just the tip of the iceberg. In this talk, we'll journey through the Milky Way and beyond to learn about the pivotal role played by tides - the same physics that sets the ocean into motion - in sculpting our Universe. Why might some planets be doomed to a fiery death? Is the Moon running away from us because we smell bad? How does a star get caught speeding at six million kilometers per hour over the local speed limit? We'll answer these questions and more as we explore this ancient yet ever-relevant niche of astrophysics.

About the Speaker

About the Speaker

Speaker

Mark Dodici

Mark is a 4th year Ph.D. candidate at the University of Toronto. One of his main space-based interests is the influence of tides on pairs and trios of stars. In his thesis research, he builds mathematical and computational models to understand several modern puzzles on this topic. Outside of work, he enjoys brewing coffee, playing baseball, and singing in a local choir. He grew up in Dryden, New York, a small town a few hours' drive from the Ontario border, and before coming up north, he completed his undergraduate degree in astrophysics at Princeton University.