Astronomy Department Calendar

Tuesday, October 21, 2025

• 

  The Ongoing Hunt for Supermassive Black Hole Binaries

  3:45 - 4:45 pm

  134 Astronomy Building

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, October 22, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar - Jay Kalinani (UIUC) "Towards end-to-end modelling of jets from binary neutron star mergers"

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium McMillan Award: Fractional quantum anomalous Hall effect in twisted MoTe₂: discovery and recent advances

  4:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Tuesday, October 28, 2025

• 

  Icko Iben Jr. Series: The Fates of Stars Orbiting too Close to Massive Black Holes

  3:45 - 4:45 pm

  NCSA Auditorium

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, October 29, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar - Isaac Legred (UIUC)

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium "Chirality Meets Quantum"

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  Icko Iben Jr. Series: Cosmic Gold: Neutron Star Collisions, Gravitational Waves, and the Origin of the Elements

  7:00 - 8:00 pm

  Lincoln Hall Theater

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, November 5, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar - Takahiro Tanaka (Yukawa Institute, Kyoto University)

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium Smitha Vishveshwara (University of Illinois Urbana Champaign) "Quantum Voyages, Cosmic Journeys: Our Shared Stories" (2025 AIP Andrew Gemant Award)

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Tuesday, November 11, 2025

• 

  The World of Webb, the Cosmic Circle of Life, and seeing through the Eyes of Einstein

  3:45 - 4:45 pm

  134 Astronomy Building

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, November 12, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar - Alex Drlica Wagner (U. Chicago/FNAL)

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium Neil Cornish (Montana State University) TBD

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, November 19, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar - Richard Feder (University of California, Berkeley)

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium McMillan Award: Fractional Quantum Anomalous Hall Effects in Rhombohedral Graphene

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Saturday, November 22, 2025

• 

  Fall break begins

  8:30 am

  • Ceremony/Service

Thursday, November 27, 2025

• 

  Thanksgiving Day

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, November 28, 2025

• 

  Day After Thanksgiving - Designated Holiday

  All Day

  • Other

Monday, December 1, 2025

• 

  Instruction resumes

  All Day

  • Other

Wednesday, December 3, 2025

• 

  Astrophysics, Relativity, and Cosmology Seminar -

  11:00 am

  Rhondale Tso Seminar Room, Loomis 236

  • Seminar/Symposium
• 

  The Physics Colloquium Bonnie Fleming (Fermi Lab) TBD

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Wednesday, December 10, 2025

• 

  Last Day of Instruction, Fall Semester

  All Day

  • Other
• 

  The Physics Colloquium Adam Kaufman (CU Boulder) TBD

  4:00 - 5:00 pm

  Loomis Lab 141

  • Seminar/Symposium

Thursday, December 11, 2025

• 

  Reading Day - IT No Change Period in effect

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, December 12, 2025

• 

  Final Exams Begin

  8:30 am

  • Ceremony/Service

Monday, December 22, 2025

• 

  First Day of Instruction, Winter Session

  All Day

  • Ceremony/Service

Wednesday, December 24, 2025

• 

  Gift Day

  All Day

  • Other

Thursday, December 25, 2025

• 

  Christmas Holiday

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, December 26, 2025

• 

  Day after Christmas - Designated Holiday

  All Day

  • Other

Monday, December 29, 2025

• 

  President Designated Holiday

  All Day

  • Other

Tuesday, December 30, 2025

• 

  Gift Day

  All Day

  • Other

Wednesday, December 31, 2025

• 

  Gift day

  All Day

  • Other

Thursday, January 1, 2026

• 

  New Year's Day

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, January 16, 2026

• 

  Final Exams Begin

  8:30 am

  • Ceremony/Service

Monday, January 19, 2026

• 

  Martin Luther King Jr. Day

  All Day

  • Other

Tuesday, January 20, 2026

• 

  First Day of Instruction, Spring Semester

  All Day

  • Other

Saturday, March 14, 2026

• 

  Spring Vacation Begins

  1:00 pm

  • Other

Monday, March 23, 2026

• 

  Instruction resumes

  7:00 am

  • Other

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

• 

  Instruction Ends

  All Day

  • Other

Thursday, May 7, 2026

• 

  Reading Day/IT No Change Period in effect

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, May 8, 2026

• 

  Final Exams Begin

  All Day

  • Other

Saturday, May 16, 2026

• 

  Commencement

  8:30 am

  Memorial Stadium

  • Ceremony/Service

Monday, May 18, 2026

• 

  First Day of Instruction, Summer Term 1

  All Day

  • Other

Monday, May 25, 2026

• 

  Memorial Day Holiday

  All Day

  • Other

Tuesday, June 16, 2026

• 

  First Day of Instruction, Summer Term 2

  All Day

  • Other

Friday, June 19, 2026

• 

  Juneteenth

  All Day

  • Ceremony/Service

Friday, July 3, 2026

• 

  Independence Day (observed)

  All Day

  • Other