Physicist Professor Brian Cox is teaming up with presenter Julia Zemiro for a new show called Stargazing, that will air on ABC over three nights.
The duo will be joined by a bunch of Australia’s leading scientists and “some familiar faces” aiming to inspire the nation to “look up” and appreciate the unique wonders of space and our cosmos.
In their own unique style, the pair will tackle some of the most intriguing questions in astronomy, such as what happens if you were sucked into a Black Hole, and do aliens exist? Closer to home, there will also be hints and tips for getting started in stargazing and advice on navigating your way around the skies.
Broadcast live from the Siding Spring Observatory, Episode 1 will look at the Milky Way, Episode 2 focuses on Planets while Episode 3 tackles Aliens. Throughout the series, the audience will be invited to “join an online experiment to discover a brand new planet, far outside the confines of our solar system”.
You can have your night sky pictures and video featured on the show by adding the hashtag #StargazingABC to Instagram, or uploading them here.
Professor Cox and Julia will be joined by experts including astrophysicist Dr Lisa Harvey-Smith from the CSIRO, astronomer Greg Quicke, Indigenous Australian Michael Anderson who, as a senior Lawman and a knowledge holder, shares some of the ancient wisdoms of his Peoples’ connection to the universe and “Citizen Science” advocate Dr Chris Lintott.
Joining the experts will be actor/comedian Josh Thomas and Gardening Australia’s Costa Georgiadis as they take part in exploring space. ABC News Presenter Kumi Taguchi will also help anchor the series and take part in regular live crosses.
Following each night’s Stargazing Live broadcast on ABC will be Stargazing Live: Back To Earth, a 30-minute special on ABC2 in which viewers can use social media to put questions directly to Professor Cox and Julia and take part in astronomy related discussions and debates live on air. Audiences will be encouraged to send questions to #CoxQuestions.
Stargazing Live will air on 4,5 and 6 April at 8.30pm AEST. Stargazing Live: Back To Earth will air 9.30pm AEST.
Both programs will also be streamed live on both ABC TV Facebook and Youtube channels.