TRURO and Penwith College students joined together to attend the Institute of Physics lecture series entitled 'Newborn Stars and Unexplored Planets' at the Penwith campus.
Dr Jenny Hatchell of the University of Exeter explained the process of star and planet formation in a very down to earth way with the help of some hands-on demonstrations illustrating some fundamental physics concepts in the process.
Stars are huge, massive and almost unimaginably distant, and the process of forming them takes millions of years.
Yet, by combining the laboratory physics that we know from Earth with observations from telescopes, it is possible to start to understand their amazing development.
Dr Hatchell discussed some of her recent astrophysics research and gave an insight into the day-to-day life of a scientist working to extend the frontiers of knowledge. She is primarily looking at the regions where stars are formed, from clouds of hydrogen, in regions like the famous Horsehead Nebula.
Chris Greenwood, currently taking A-level physics as part of his suite of courses said: "The lecture was interesting and informative but most importantly aspirational. I will certainly be considering astrophysics at Exeter."
