Foothill College Lecture Series

Dr. James Kaler of the University of Illinois, will give a non-technical, illustrated talk on: "Extreme Stars: The Strangest Critters in the Stellar Zoo" in the Smithwick Theater, Foothill College, El Monte Road and Freeway 280, in Los Altos Hills, California. Free and open to the public. Parking on campus costs $2.

Dr. Kaler, the author of a dozen popular books and introductory texts, will discuss the strangest stars astronomers have discovered. These include stars as big as the orbit of Jupiter or so small they have "gone down the drain", stars with lethal magnetism and stars that whirl so fast they would be a blur. Strangest of all are double star systems, where stars hurl hot material at each other or one star can eventually kick its neighbor out of the system entirely.

Learn about the mysteries of star birth and death during this rare Northern California appearance by one of the best astronomy popularizers in the country. Dr. Kaler is the author of such books as "The Greatest Hundred Stars", "The Little Book of Stars", and "Extreme Stars" and appears frequently on Illinois television and radio.