Astronomy on Tap: First Light, the Cosmos and Artificial Intelligence
Feb
24
2026
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ChangHoon Hahn -
Alessandra Venditti
Feb
24
2026
-
ChangHoon Hahn
-
Alessandra Venditti
Description
Astronomers today apply cutting-edge machine learning and AI to the effort to understand millions of galaxies under observation and answer fundamental questions in cosmology and galaxy evolution. These include questions such as:
- What is the nature of dark energy that drives the accelerated expansion of the universe?
- What is the sum of neutrino masses?
- How does the underlying dark matter environment of galaxies impact their evolution?
Come hear all about this, and about the work underway to understand some of the earliest stars and light in the cosmos, from award-winning experts.
Join Astronomy on Tap ATX for this casual and entertaining evening where astronomers stand ready to answer your burning questions about our universe!
About the Speakers
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ChangHoon Hahn
Assistant Professor
Department of Astronomy, UT Austin
ChangHoon Hahn is an assistant professor at The University of Texas at Austin. His research lies in the intersection of cosmology and galaxy evolution and leverages his expertise in observations, ...
ChangHoon Hahn is an assistant professor at The University of Texas at Austin. His research lies in the intersection of cosmology and galaxy evolution and leverages his expertise in observations, simulations and AI. He is a leading member of the next-generation galaxy surveys, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument and the Prime Focus Spectrograph Galaxy Evolution Survey. He also leads collaborations building state-of-the-art cosmological simulations and testing galaxy formation models. His group is developing statistical and machine learning tools that can unlock the scientific potential of astronomical datasets.
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Alessandra Venditti
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Cosmic Frontier Center, UT Austin
Alessandra Venditti is a Cosmic Frontier Center Prize research fellow at The University of Texas at Austin. Her research is focused on the formation and evolution of early galaxies, which ...
Alessandra Venditti is a Cosmic Frontier Center Prize research fellow at The University of Texas at Austin. Her research is focused on the formation and evolution of early galaxies, which she has studied through cutting-edge cosmological simulations, analytical and semi-analytical models, with the goal of guiding the search for the first stars.
Location
Celis Brewery
10001 Metric Blvd.