Ever wonder what it would feel like to be sucked into a black hole? Audience members will have the chance to fall into an artificial black hole and participate in other activities at the Saturday, June 16, CU Wizards show "Black Holes."
Professor Andrew Hamilton of the astrophysical and planetary sciences department will demonstrate the concepts of black holes in CU-Boulder's Fiske Planetarium at 9:30 a.m. and again at 11:30 a.m.
The CU Wizards show will feature an artificial black hole where volunteer kids from the audience will leap off a treadmill onto a crash mat to illustrate falling into a black hole. They also will learn why nothing can get out of a black hole and what would actually happen to a person who fell into a black hole.
CU Wizards is a monthly series offered from September to June that introduces topics in astronomy, chemistry and physics. Though intended primarily for students in grades five through nine, the shows are educational and entertaining to people of any age.
The audience also will make tornadoes on stage during the show, and light the fuse of a gravity-powered jet. Hamilton said the session will be taped, so audience members can watch themselves jumping into the artificial black hole.
"Black Holes" is the final presentation of the 2000-2001 CU Wizards series.
Free parking for the June 16 show is available in lot 436 east of the Engineering Center and lot 308 west of Fiske Planetarium.
Anyone with a disability or special need should notify the physics office at (303) 492-6952 a few days prior to the show. For information about CU Wizards call (303) 492-4318 or visit the Web site at .