"For years our program has aimed not only to present the progress of astronomy, but to give an opportunity to our members to hear, see, and visit with eminent scientists who actually are contributing to the ever-widening horizon of our knowledge of the universe. ”
1947 quote from club founder Dr. Jason J. Nassau
The Cleveland Astronomical Society
LECTURE NEWS: MEETINGS:
2026 - 2027
The Cleveland Astronomical Society Lecture Series
has announced the lineup of speakers for the 105th Season.
October 1, 2026 Speaker: Dr. Ralph Harvey and Dr. Albert Colman Title: “Oh, the Fragility of Life: a passive-aggressive debate on whether a Martian biosphere could have been knee-capped, bottle-necked, choked-out, or otherwise killed” Description: Whether Mars could (or did, or does) support life has been a topic of both scientific and cultural dialogues for centuries. But many modern discussions include an unstated assumption - that planets like Mars can start out habitable, but over time become inhospitable to the point where the entire global biosphere collapses. In this presentation we argue for and against the plausibility of this underlying assumption; can a global biosphere be incapacitated to the point where it's virtually undetectable? How? And what are the implications for Mars, Venus, exoplanets and the Earth? Together, going back and forth, Dr. Harvey and Colman will discuss the fragility of Earth and Mars ecosystems with a question of why Mars life never developed further. Bio: Dr. Ralph Harvey has active research across a wide spectrum of geology including the mineralogy and geochemistry of meteorites, with a focus on Martian meteorites and micrometeorites; meteorite and micrometeorite recovery and concentration mechanisms, predominantly in polar settings; the recent history of polar ice sheets; cryogenic weathering and associated mineralogical alteration mechanisms on Earth and Mars; exploring the geochemical and climatological limits on biological activity in cryogenic settings; and future human exploration of Mars. From 1991 to 2023 he was the Principal Investigator for the Antarctic Search for Meteorites program with active research funding from NASA's Cosmochemistry and Mars Fundamental Research programs.
Bio: Dr. Ralph Harvey is a Professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science at Case Western Reserve University whose research explores the climate history of our solar system through mineralogical and geochemical studies of planetary materials. He is an author on more than 200 publications on topics that range far beyond meteorites, from experimental studies of the weathering of basaltic rocks at Venus' surface to possible records of dark matter in granites. Dr. Harvey earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh in 1990 in Geology and Planetary Science.
Dr. Albert Colman's interests include research on the study of global biogeochemical cycles and environmental conditions past and present. He employs a combination of field-based studies, laboratory microbiology and geochemistry experiments, mathematical modeling, and advanced stable isotope analytical techniques. Dr. Colman earned his PhD from Yale University in 2002 in Geology and Geophysics, his MPhil from Yale University in 1998, and his AB from Harvard University in Earth and Planetary Science in 1994.
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