KINGSTON, R.I. – Sept. 28, 2026 – Tanya Harrison, a Canadian planetary scientist, will speak on the significance of space exploration beyond the search for extraterrestrial life in her lecture titled “More Than Martians” on October 6 at the University of Rhode Island (URI).
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The lecture is part of URI's fall Honors Colloquium series, “Interstellar Exploration: Journey Beyond Your Limits,” which focuses on the scientific implications of outer space travel. Harrison, known for her work on multiple NASA missions, including Opportunity, Curiosity, and Perseverance rovers, will discuss the historical context of the search for life on Mars and its broader importance, regardless of finding aliens.
Harrison's lecture will take place at 5:30 p.m. in Edwards Hall on the Kingston Campus and will also be livestreamed. Recognized as a leading expert in Mars exploration, she has received two NASA Group Achievement Awards and is a co-founder of the Zed Factor Fellowship, which connects students from historically excluded backgrounds to paid internships in aerospace.
Following Harrison’s talk, Timiebi Aganaba, an international lawyer and assistant professor at Arizona State University, will present on October 13. The 2023 URI Honors Colloquium is organized by the Department of Physics and aims to foster discussions that merge cutting-edge science with imaginative concepts in science fiction. The series concludes in December with a lecture focused on achieving the seemingly impossible in outer space.
The annual URI Honors Colloquium is free and open to the public. For more information and to access recordings of this year’s events, visit the Honors Colloquium archives or contact [email protected].