The Martz Observatory will host a screening with speaker Margaret Verrico at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19.

Verrico’s talk will be shown on the big screen at the Martz-Kohl Observatory and is available online via Zoom. Those interested are encouraged to come to the observatory to virtually meet Verrico and join in the question-and-answer discussion after her talk. If the weather permits, there will be public viewing opportunities.

Verrico will discuss galaxies, including how different types of galaxies came to be, the evolution of galaxies, explaining how they formed in the early universe and how they’ve evolved into the diverse population of galaxies seen today. Verrico will discuss how astronomers study galaxies and make inferences about their past, present, and potential futures. She’ll dive into the processes that drive the transformation of galaxies, from their star-forming spiral stages to the quenching of star formation and eventual transition into elliptical galaxies. Along the way, she’ll also explore the role supermassive black holes play in galaxy evolution, including the monster black hole that lies at the center of the Milky Way galaxy.

Verrico is a Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she focuses on galaxy evolution and the relationship between galaxies and the supermassive black holes at their centers. She earned her bachelor of science in physics from the University of Pittsburgh in 2021 and is originally from Buffalo. Verrico is particularly interested in the ways galaxies “shut down” their star formation and the transient events that occur around supermassive black holes, which provide valuable insights into a black hole’s “appetite” and growth.

The Martz-Kohl Observatory, located at 176 Robbin Hill Road, Frewsburg, NY, is operated by the Marshal Martz Memorial Astronomical Association, Inc., a non-profit organization devoted to the amateur astronomer.