What astronomical object could the Christmas Star have been?
Join Dr Becca Whitehead as she looks at whether the Christmas Star could have been a comet, supernova, planetary conjunction or another phenomenon. We will look at the ways in which Christmas carols, medieval art and original sources have influenced our astronomical interpretation of this key event in the Christmas narrative.
Bio: Becca is an academic at The Open University in the School of Physical Sciences and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Since 2011 she has taught on a variety of modules including Physics and Space, Planetary Science and Astronomy. She has an MPhys in Physics with Cosmology and an experimental PhD in Ultra-Low Temperature Physics from Lancaster University.
Prior to working with the OU, Becca worked at Lancaster University with the Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching. Her research interest is Physics Education Research and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.