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How dust absorbs and scatters starlight as a function of wavelength (known as the interstellar extinction curve) is crucial for correcting for the effects of dust extinction in inferring the true luminosity and colors of reddened…
Commercial endeavours have already compromised our relationship with space. The Artemis Accords are creating a framework that will commercialize the Moon and further impact that relation. To confront that impact, a number of organizations…
Indigenous peoples across the world observe the motions and positions of stars to develop seasonal calendars. Additionally, changing properties of stars, such as their brightness and colour, are also used for predicting weather. Combining…
The color of galaxies is a fundamental property, easily measured, that constrains models of galaxies and their evolution. Dust attenuation and star formation history (SFH) are the dominant factors affecting the color of galaxies. Here we…
In addition to planets and other small bodies, stellar systems will likely also host exozodiacal dust, or exozodi. This warm dust primarily resides in or near the habitable zone of a star, and scatters stellar light in visible to NIR…
Just one generation ago, schoolkids were taught that Aboriginal people couldn't count beyond five, wandered the desert scavenging for food, had no civilization or religion, had no agriculture, couldn't navigate, didn't build houses, and…
The field of exoplanetary science is making rapid progress both in statistical studies of exoplanet properties as well as in individual characterization. As space missions provide an emerging picture of formation and evolution of…
It has been hypothesized that advanced technological civilizations will construct giant space colonies and supporting infrastructures to orbit about their home stars. With data from recent satellites that operate at infrared and optical…
Over the past decades and even centuries, the astronomical community has accumulated a signif-icant heritage of recorded observations of a great many astronomical objects. Those records con-tain irreplaceable information about long-term…
I review the effects of dust obscuration in galaxies at both low and high redshifts, and briefly discuss a method to remove dust reddening from the emerging light of star-forming galaxies. I also analyze the evolution of the dust opacity in…
(abridged) The study of other worlds is key to understanding our own, and not only provides clues to the origin of our civilization, but also looks into its future. Rather than in identifying nearby systems and learning about their…
Astronomy, often perceived as a distant or luxury science, holds immense potential as a driver for sustainable local socio-economic development. This paper explores how astronomy can create tangible benefits for communities through…
In D(L)akota star knowledge, the Sun is known as Wi and the Moon is Han-Wi. They have an important relationship, husband and wife. The pattern of their ever-changing relationship is mirrored in the motions of Sun and Moon as seen from our…
There are many indications that anthropogenic global warming poses a serious threat to our civilization and its ecological support systems. Ideally this problem will be overcome by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Various space-based…
As the oldest science common to all human cultures, astronomy has a unique connection to indigenous knowledge (IK) and the long history of indigenous scientific contributions. Many STEM disciplines, agencies and institutions have begun to…
Environment is one of the primary drivers of galaxy evolution; via multiple mechanisms, it can control the critical process of transforming galaxies from star forming to quiescent, commonly termed "quenching". Despite its importance,…
The atmospheres of between one quarter and one half of observed single white dwarfs in the Milky Way contain heavy element pollution from planetary debris. The pollution observed in white dwarfs in binary star systems is, however, less…
Galaxies behind the Milky Way suffer size reduction and dimming due to their obscuration by dust in the disk of our Galaxy. The degree of obscuration is wavelength dependent. It decreases towards longer wavelengths. Compared to the optical,…
In this paper we explore the relation between dust extinction and stellar light distribution in disks of spiral galaxies. Extinction influences our dynamical and photometric perception of disks, since it can distort our measurement of the…
This work presents a simple alternative technique to observe the polarization of the skylight on Earth. Using a birefringent material and a polarizer to look at the polarized light from the blue sky, it is possible to see a colored pattern…