Astrophysics Research
Astrophysics
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While astrophysics deals with objects at unimaginably large distances from the Earth, our emphasis on observational astrophysics gives midshipmen hands-on technical experience with concepts and technologies they will use in their military careers. Our 0.5 meter telescopes can satisfy a large number of time-based monitoring of astrophysical objects, including successful observations of asteroid/comet orbits, rotations, occultations, exoplanet transits and stellar stability. Midshipmen have the opportunity to collaborate with our research faculty on cutting edge astrophysics research projects including quasars, massive stars, asteroids, and comets. Facilities: 20 inch reflector and 12 inch refractor observatories |
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Astrophysics Research
Here are the professors that are currently working on research concerning astrophysics. Midshipmen are encouraged to reach out to professors to conduct research.
Dana Andersondanderso@usna.eduDana Anderson explores the chemical composition of planet-forming materials through astrochemical computational modeling and telescope observations of protoplanetary disks around distant young stars. Molecular emission from these disks can be used to determine how much material is present during the early stages of planet formation, the
chemical composition of different components of this material, and the lifetime of this material. These measurements aid in our understanding of the origins of the planets in our solar system and exoplanets in planetary systems around distant stars. |
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Matthew Knightknight@usna.eduMatthew Knight is interested in comets, asteroids, interstellar objects, and other small bodies in the solar system. These are the 'fossils' of planet formation, and their study can inform us about how our (and other) solar system formed and subsequently evolved. He uses observations from a variety of ground- and space-based telescopes to remotely study their physical properties. He is also a member of two space missions currently under development -- NASA's Double Asteroid Redirect Target (DART) and the European Space Agency's Comet Interceptor -- that will visit small bodies in the next decade. |
Jeffrey Larsenlarsen@usna.eduJeffrey Larsen came to USNA after nearly a decade working to find near-Earth asteroids with the Spacewatch Program at the University of Arizona. Asteroids are important to humanity -- they help us understand the creation of the solar system, promise to be a future source of natural resources and are a (remotely) possible source of natural disasters if not monitored. Larsen still works with Spacewatch and observes with world class telescopes to support them but his research interests at USNA are currently focused on creating viable student research instruments out of our two 0.5 meter telescopes in the fields of asteroid orbits, lightcurves, occultation observations, exoplanet transit monitoring, space situational awareness observations and any time based astronomical
observation involving photometry.
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Jamie Lomaxlomaxj@usna.edu
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Christopher Morgancmorgan@usna.eduQuasars are the most luminous sources in the Universe, but the precise mechanism that leads to this prodigious luminosity is in open question. The physical structure of quasars is notoriously difficult to study since all known quasars are located billions of light years from Earth. The angular sizes they subtend at these impossibly large distances are simply too small to be resolved with any conventional telescopes. My collaborators and I have succeeded in skirting this limitation by exploiting a small subset of quasars that happen to be gravitationally lensed by galaxies in the foreground. |
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