Almost every point of light we see in the night sky is a star. Although the stars may look the same, they come in a variety of types, sizes and ages.

Astronomer Mike Montgomery will lead a fascinating journey among the stars of the Milky Way on Thursday, Nov. 3, starting at 7:30 p.m., at the University of Delaware’s Clayton Hall Conference Center.

Montgomery is the director of science operations for the Delaware Asteroseismic Research Center at the University of Delaware. He also is a research scientist at McDonald Observatory at the University of Texas at Austin.

Montgomery’s talk, “Dancing with the Stars,” is the fall installment of the 2016 Harcourt C. (Ace) Vernon Memorial Lecture.

Each star is the site of nuclear fusion, producing the heavy elements in our galaxy, such as carbon, oxygen and nitrogen, and the light to warm planetary systems.

Montgomery will show what we can learn from star vibrations and their light that reaches our planet. He also will discuss recent efforts to create bits of stellar atmospheres right here on Earth, using the “Z Machine,” at Sandia National Labs in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Its generators compress electrical energy and turn it into nanosecond pulses of enormous power, which are then used to generate X-rays and gamma rays — and tiny pieces of stars.

The Vernon Memorial Lecture is free and open to the public. Advance registration is requested to ensure adequate seating.

The lecture is sponsored by the Delaware Asteroseismic Research Center, Mount Cuba Astronomical Foundation and Mount Cuba Astronomical Observatory in Greenville, Delaware.

Harcourt C. (Ace) Vernon (1907-78), after whom the lecture is named, was one of the observatory’s founders and the first chairman of its board of trustees.