[Erwin]

Dear colleagues,

We invite you Wednesday, June 24, at 12:00 EEST at the Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy Scientific Seminar:
dr. Jeffrey Hodgson "Measuring cosmological distances using secular parallax and Space Only Very Long Baseline Interferometry" and dr. Jacobo Asorey Barreiro "A Cosmic Dance: How Supermassive Black Holes and their Host Galaxies are tangled up"

Please note that this seminar will be in hybrid format.

dr. Jeffrey Hodgson
Title: Measuring cosmological distances using secular parallax and Space Only Very Long Baseline Interferometry.
Abstract:
One of the most impressive astrophysical measurements that could be made is parallax to quasars.
Normal parallax uses the distance between the Sun and the Earth as the baseline. We propose using the motion of the Earth around the Milky Way as the baseline, a phenomenon known as "Secular Parallax".
We suggest that using Space-only VLBI, this subtle parallax should be measurable to nearby sources (such as Cen A or M87) at relatively low frequencies such as 86 GHz using phase referencing.
By using Space-only VLBI at higher frequencies, such as 700 GHz as proposed for the Capella mission, measuring the secular parallax across the observable universe should be possible.


dr. Jacobo Asorey Barreiro
Title: A Cosmic Dance: How Supermassive Black Holes and their Host Galaxies are tangled up
Abstract: In the most recent years, astrophysical observations and gravitational wave observatories have allowed us to successfully dig into the most extreme regimes that general relativity predicts, especially about black holes. In a recent research, we have found a connection between the sub-parsec supermassive black hole (SMBH) and the galaxy that host them, despite the huge difference in scale between both astrophysical objects. In the talk, I will demonstrate a weak but significant alignment between the direction of the jets emitted by the SMBHs and the shape of the galaxy. The implications of this study link the black hole, despite its small size compared relative to the host galaxy, with the cosmic environment. I will also show how the impact of galaxy morphology in this connection. The findings suggests that the black hole may play a significant role in shaping the galaxy and some sort of co-evolution, providing new insight into galaxy evolution and rising new questions, entangled with recent observations by the James Webb Space Telescope on early quasars.



Astronomical Institute is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Astronomical Institute's Zoom Meeting
Time: Jun 24, 2026 12:00 PM Bucharest
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