Dr. Jaymie Matthews on Stars, Exoplanets, and Canada’s MOST Telescope

Jaymie Matthews is an astrophysicist and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of British Columbia. His work focuses on stellar seismology — the study of star vibrations — and he is closely associated with MOST, the Microvariability and Oscillations of STars telescope, Canada’s first space telescope. In this conversation, we discuss how astronomers study the hidden interiors of stars, what tiny changes in starlight can reveal, and how space telescopes such as MOST helped open new ways of observing the universe. We also explore exoplanets, stellar pulsations, the relationship between light and sound in astronomy, and the way small missions can make a large scientific impact. The conversation also touches on Jaymie’s long career at UBC, his work as a public communicator of astronomy, his recognition as an Officer of the Order of Canada, and the larger question of how science, imagination, and wonder meet when we look at the night sky. Recorded live on CiTR 101.9 FM.