Flamsteed Lecture: The Chemistry of the Universe

There is a real and fascinating probability that in the future we will be confronted with extraterrestrial worlds whose physical conditions and compositions result in chemistries radically different from our own.

In this lecture, we will outline our current knowledge of the origin and distribution of the elements in the Universe, as we try to push as far as we can into astronomical environments where complex chemistry is taking place. 

Currently we believe we have a remarkably good understanding of the processes and astronomical sites that have led to the formation of the elements in the periodic table. Except for hydrogen, some helium and a little lithium, all of them have been synthesised since the beginning of the Universe. 

Recent spectroscopic observations to high redshifts are enabling us to follow their build up in galaxies from back in the earliest times to the present. The discovery of many planetary systems beyond the Solar System, and the investigation of dense interstellar environments, imply a huge unexplored range of chemical possibilities and may lead to profound implications for life in the Universe. It is suggested that extensive theoretical investigation of these enticing possibilities may be both possible and necessary.

Meet the speaker

Mike Edmunds is Emeritus Professor of Astrophysics at Cardiff University, and a past President of the Royal Astronomical Society. He was educated at Cambridge, but has lived and worked in Wales for fifty years. His research career involved the determination and interpretation of the abundances of the chemical elements in the Universe – particularly through spectroscopy of galaxies - and investigation of the origin of interstellar dust. 

Later work has been in the history of astronomy, including the ancient Greek Antikythera Mechanism. He was a member of two UK Research Councils. He is a Vice-President of the Herschel Society and an Honorary Vice-President of the Society for the History of Astronomy. He can occasionally be seen in his one-man play about Newton - Sir Isaac Remembers… He was the subject of BBC Radio 4’s The Life Scientific in April 2024, also appearing on In Our Time.

Main image curtesy: Gem in the Universe © Runwei Xu - Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024 Young