The Watkins Community Museum of History, 1047 Mass., will be hosting a new lecture series called Local History Makers.

The series will feature past and present history makers in Kansas and the Lawrence area.

“It’s to highlight local people, and how members of our community affected our lives both locally and nationally,” said Rebecca Phipps, director of the museum.

Barbara Anthony-Twarog, a professor of physics and astronomy at Kansas University, will present the first program at 7 p.m. Thursday at the museum. She will be speaking about Clyde Tombaugh, a Kansan who discovered Pluto.

Anthony-Twarog, who studies the evolution of stars and the chemical evolution of the galaxy, will discuss Tombaugh’s life as a Kansan and the science behind the search for Pluto. She will also be discussing Pluto’s current status.

The lecture is free and open to the public.