NASA Solar System Ambassador Derrick Pitts leads captivating presentation about space exploration
Renowned astronomer and NASA Solar System Ambassador Derrick Pitts led Malibu residents on a captivating journey through the universe as part of the Malibu Speaker Series on Aug. 12.
Pitts is the chief astronomer and director of the Fels Planetarium at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and has been a NASA ambassador since 2009.
His presentation titled “Home Away From Home: Searching the Universe for a Place Like Earth” presented the latest in space discoveries, proposed theories on where life may be across the universe and put into perspective the immense size of the universe and how small Earth is in comparison.
Pitts aimed to explain humanity’s fascination with space exploration and the purpose for investing into researching worlds away from our own.
“There’s a question that we want to answer that drives all of our exploration and our research,” Pitts said. “Yeah, we want to know what life is out there, but the bigger question, the real question is a philosophical one. It’s not is there other life out there, it’s ‘are we alone?’”
The presentation was very detailed and well-organized, and the charismatic Pitts delivered the information with humor and impressive knowledge of the science behind space exploration.
He told the audience he hoped to help them connect the dots between what they know about space with the latest information and theories of life beyond our own.
“You come to this program this evening with knowledge already of space exploration and astronomy, what I like to call your science capital,” Pitts said. “What we’re going to do this evening is apply your science capital to this framework about this search for planets like Earth and add new information to that science capital.”
Throughout the presentation, many audience members took phones of infographs, quickly jotted down notes, and reacted in stunned silence to some of the most impressive facts and theories.
One audience member expressed her hope that Pitts would someday record his program because she believed everyone should get the opportunity to hear him speak.
Jennifer Roberson is a member of the Los Angeles Astronomical Society and she said Pitts’ presentation was veryfascinating.
“It expanded my knowledge on space exploration quite a bit,” Roberson explained. “We’re pack animals, we don’t want to be alone. We want to know if there is something or someone else out there with us and how could there not be?”
Malibu resident Ann Kronen was astounded by the presentation and said she was grateful to have been able to expand on her framework of knowledge of the universe.
“Almost like the frame of a house, information I get in the future will add to what I know, like building with legos,” Kronen said.
Kronen praised the Malibu Library for hosting the Speaker Series, providing the community with unique and mindful educational opportunities.
“I have gone to quite a number of these talks that the library series puts on and they bring people who I would never, ever have an opportunity to meet otherwise,” Kronen said. “It feels very intimate, and it’s not just a classroom but an interaction. That’s what makes it special.”
NASA has confirmed 5,743 exoplanets, planets outside of our solar system, across 4286 planetary systems, within what is estimated to be between hundreds of billions to 2 trillion galaxies in the universe.
Yet, we have not found life beyond Earth.
Pitts pondered our celestial uniqueness to close the presentation.
“In the trillions of galaxies, could it be that we are the only intelligent life force around? Possibly — statistically not likely, but it is possible that we are unique,” Pitts said. “But that uniqueness makes us alone. How do we feel that ashumans that like to be together?”
