Related papers: Teaching with Code: Globular Cluster Distance Lab
We discuss the problem of how to calculate the distance between two cosmological objects given their redshifts and angular separation on the sky. Although of a fundamental nature, this problem and its solution seem to lack a detailed…
All but a few digital computers used for scientific computations have supported floating-point and digital arithmetic of rather limited numerical precision. The underlying assumptions were that the systems being studied were basically…
Indigenous Knowledge is important for Indigenous communities across the globe and for the advancement of our general scientific knowledge. In particular, Indigenous astronomical knowledge integrates many aspects of Indigenous Knowledge,…
Computational skills are required across all astronomy disciplines. Many students enter degree programs without sufficient skills to solve computational problems in their core classes or contribute immediately to research. We recommend…
We present the science case for mapping several thousand galaxy (proto)clusters at z=1-10 with a large aperture single dish sub-mm facility, producing a high-redshift counterpart to local large surveys of rich clusters like the well-studied…
The Astropy Project (http://astropy.org) is, in its own words, "a community effort to develop a single core package for Astronomy in Python and foster interoperability between Python astronomy packages." For five years this project has been…
For centuries, the rich nocturnal environment of the starry sky could be modelled only by analogue tools such as paper planispheres, atlases, globes and numerical tables. The immersive sky simulator of the twentieth century, the…
The spatial distribution of compact dark matter in our Galaxy can be determined in a few years of monitoring Galactic globular clusters for microlensing. Globular clusters are the only dense fields of stars distributed throughout the…
Scientists in all domains face a data avalanche - both from better instruments and from improved simulations. We believe that computer science tools and computer scientists are in a position to help all the sciences by building tools and…
Counting pairs of galaxies or stars according to their distance is at the core of real-space correlation analyzes performed in astrophysics and cosmology. Upcoming galaxy surveys (LSST, Euclid) will measure properties of billions of…
The correlation between the luminosities and rotation velocities of galaxies can be used to estimate distances to late-type galaxies. It is an appropriate moment to re-evaluate this method given the great deal of new information available.…
Having a need to perform differential photometry for tens of thousands stars in a several square degrees field, we developed Astrokit program. The software corrects the star brightness variations caused by variations of atmospheric…
Interstellar dust is still a dominant uncertainty in Astronomy, limiting precision in e.g., cosmological distance estimates and models of how light is re-processed within a galaxy. When a foreground galaxy serendipitously overlaps a more…
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…
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…
Abridged: The golden age of astrophysics is upon us with both grand discoveries (extra-solar planets, dark matter, dark energy) and precision cosmology. Fundamental understanding of the working of stars and galaxies is within reach, thanks…
The ACS Survey of Globular Clusters has used HST's Wide-Field Channel to obtain uniform imaging of 65 of the nearest globular clusters to provide an extensive homogeneous dataset for a broad range of scientific investigations. The survey…
We present cosmo_learn, an open-source python-based software package designed to simulate cosmological data and perform data-driven inference using a range of modern statistical and machine learning techniques. Motivated by the growing…
We propose a method of distance determination based on the internal structure and dynamics of disk galaxies. The method relies on the universal luminosity profile of a stellar disk represented by an exponential law. Calibrating nearby…
"Computational experiments" use code and interactive visualizations to convey mathematical and physical concepts in an intuitive way, and are increasingly used to support ex cathedra lecturing in scientific and engineering disciplines.…