Related papers: Teaching students about informatics and astronomy …
We review the available atomic data used for interpreting and modeling X-ray observations. The applications for these data can be divided into several levels of detail, ranging from compilations which can be used with direct inspection of…
As astronomical photometric surveys continue to tile the sky repeatedly, the potential to pushdetection thresholds to fainter limits increases; however, traditional digital-tracking methods cannotachieve this efficiently beyond time scales…
Parallax is the most important astronomical method for determining the distances from the Earth to nearby stars. We present two hands-on activities that explore the concepts and practice of parallax measurement. The first activity is a…
All sciences, including astronomy, are now entering the era of information abundance. The exponentially increasing volume and complexity of modern data sets promises to transform the scientific practice, but also poses a number of common…
With the advent of optical interferometers that will be coming online in the next decade, radial velocity searches for extra-solar planets will be complemented by high angular resolution astrometric measurements. In this paper, we explore…
In order to avoid collisions with space debris, the near Earth orbit must be continuously scanned by either ground- or spaced-based facilities. For the low Earth orbit, radar telescopes are the workhorse for this task, especially due to…
The digital revolution is transforming astronomy from a data-starved to a data-submerged science. Instruments such as the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), and the Square Kilometer Array…
Survey telescopes such as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Square Kilometre Array will discover billions of static and dynamic astronomical sources. Properly mined, these enormous datasets will likely be wellsprings of rare or unknown…
The research about asteroids attracts more and more attention recently, especially focusing on their physical structures, such as the spin axis, the rotation period and the shape. The long distance between Earth observers and asteroids…
Hands-On Universe (HOU) is an educational program that enables students to investigate the Universe while applying tools and concepts from science, math, and technology. Using the Internet, HOU participants around the world request…
The Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos (ORM), in the Canary Islands (Spain), was one of the candidates to host the future European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT) and is the site of the Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC), the largest…
The lightcurves of asteroids are essential for determining their physical characteristics, including shape, spin, size, and surface composition. However, most asteroids are missing some of these basic physical parameters due to lack of…
Computer programming was once thought of as a skill required only by professional software developers. But today, given the ubiquitous nature of computation and data science it is quickly becoming necessary for all scientists and engineers…
We summarize the status of a computer simulator for microlens planet surveys. The simulator generates synthetic light curves of microlensing events observed with specified networks of telescopes over specified periods of time. Particular…
Radio astronomical observations have very poor signal to noise ratios, unlike in other disciplines. On the other hand, it is possible to observe the object of interest for long time intervals as well as using a wider bandwidth.…
The first step in a science project is the acquisition and understanding of the relevant data. This paper outlines the results of a project to design and test network tools specifically oriented at retrieving astronomical data. The tools…
This tutorial covers the use of absolute astrometry, in particular from the combination of the Hipparcos and Gaia missions, to identify faint companions to nearby stars and to measure the masses and orbits of those companions. Absolute…
In the Tuscan Archipelago (Italy) it's possible to make an approximate measurement of the Earth's radius from the Elba Island using the Pianosa Island as a ship that appears and disappears on the horizon depending on the observer's height…
Multiple terrestrial and space-based telescopes have been proposed for detecting and tracking near-Earth objects (NEOs). Detailed simulations of the search performance of these systems have used complex computer codes that are not widely…
Popular accounts of exciting discoveries often draw students to physics and astronomy, but at the introductory level it is challenging to connect with these in a meaningful way. The use of real astronomical data in the classroom can help…