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To the Ends of the Earth, Donald Jackson with contributions from Andrew Jamieson and Sally Mae Joseph, Copyright 2002, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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Dr. Anton Koekemoer, Ph.D.
(Research Astrophysicist, Space Telescope Science Institute)
Join a tour through our universe with research astrophysicist Dr. Anton Koekemoer, for exciting discoveries revealed by Hubble and the James Webb Space Telescope. From our own solar neighborhood to the most distant galaxies, from majestic star clusters to beautiful clouds of gas, we are always learning more about how our wonderful universe works. Yet, while the physical processes in our universe are explored by science, the sense of awe and wonder may be appreciated even more deeply by those who are of faith, as the Psalmist exclaims: “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the skies proclaim His handiwork” (Ps. 19:1), or further, “What is humankind, that Thou art mindful of us?” (Ps. 8:4) while the very next verse, and the scriptures generally, describe how precious we all are. In this talk, alongside the latest exciting astronomical discoveries about our universe, including some of the Hubble images that inspired the beautiful artwork in The Saint John’s Bible, Dr. Koekemoer also shares some personal reflections, from his own perspective as a Christian, on how our scientific view of the universe can be reconciled in harmony with faith, to enrich our lives and our perspective on the universe in which we live.
About Dr. Anton Koekemoer:
Dr. Anton Koekemoer is a research astrophysicist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, MD, the scientific center of operations for Hubble and the James Webb Space Telescope, where he has carried out research for over 25 years on his main scientific interests in distant galaxies and black holes. He holds a Ph.D. in Astrophysics from the Australian National University, has held research positions at Leiden University, the Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and was in charge of one of the imaging cameras onboard Hubble for several years. He produced the original imaging of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field and other large cosmological projects, as well as several of the first public images released from the James Webb Space Telescope. In addition to his work as a research astrophysicist, he is also a Christian, and in his personal time he engages in the dialog between faith and science, including serving as an advisor to seminaries who are integrating science into their courses, and other efforts aimed at reconciling faith and science in harmony with one another.