As part of academic activities aimed at connecting students with modern research directions in physics and astronomy, the Faculty of Physics & Engineering Physics, University of Science, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, in collaboration with the USAC Astronomy Club, is organizing a seminar titled “Black Holes in Light and Gravity: A Story of Messengers.”
The seminar will introduce significant advances in black hole research from the perspective of multi-messenger astronomy - an approach that combines observations from the electromagnetic spectrum and gravitational waves to explore the nature of black hole systems in the universe.
Seminar Information
- Time: 09:00 – 11:00, Sunday, March 22, 2026
- Venue: University of Science, VNU-HCM – Dong Hoa Campus (The specific room will be announced via email after registration)
- Speaker: Nguyen Quoc Bao, PhD Candidate, Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA), Harvard University
Main Topics
The seminar will present and discuss several key topics, including:
- An overview of the development of black hole research, from its origin as a theoretical consequence of General Relativity to its role as a central observational target in modern astronomy.
- The role of supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies, as well as the impact of accretion processes and relativistic jets on star formation and galaxy evolution.
- Recent observational breakthroughs, including:
+ The discovery of stellar-mass binary black hole systems through gravitational wave observatories LIGO, Virgo, and KAGRA.
+ The first images of the black hole shadows M87* and Sgr A* produced by the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration.
+ New contributions from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in the search for supermassive black holes in the early universe.
+ Prospects of next-generation missions and observatories such as LISA, LILA, and the Black Hole Explorer (BHEX) for studying massive and intermediate-mass black hole systems.
Through this seminar, participants will gain exposure to cutting-edge research directions in modern astrophysics and a deeper understanding of the role of multi-messenger astronomy in addressing fundamental questions about the formation, evolution, and activity of black holes in the universe.
Registration link: https://forms.gle/kPeQ426CyiyNHZeV6
The Faculty of Physics – Engineering Physics cordially invites faculty members, students, and all interested participants to register and attend the seminar.