Project:	Projects in Astronomy
Disciplines:	Astronomy, Astrophysics
Mentor:	Yinuo Han, Barr Fellow, (GPS), yinuo@caltech.edu
Background:	Multiple opportunities for summer projects in astronomy are available, which lie broadly in the fields of exoplanets and stars. Projects range from observations and data inference to theoretical modeling. You are welcome to get in touch if you are interested in working within the group and we can discuss projects based on your interests!
Description:	In the field of exoplanets, the past few decades of observational efforts have revealed that planets and belts of planetesimals, which are familiar to us in the Solar System, are in fact common around other stars. Images of these extrasolar planetesimal belts, also known as debris disks, have shown that they exhibit a range of observable structures, such as gaps, asymmetries and warps, which are shaped by the formation and evolution history of the planetary system, as well as any ongoing interactions with planets in regions where they are difficult to detect. Projects are available to use images of debris disks to understand the dynamical conditions in planetary systems or to computationally model the geometry of the disk shaped by perturbing planets. Projects could make use of data from a range of premier observatories, including but not limited to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), or could take a more theoretical or computational approach, depending on the interest of the student. In the field of stars, high resolution imaging has in recent decades revealed the detailed structure of dusty nebulae formed from the collision of stellar winds launched by Wolf-Rayet stars. These are the most massive stars that are nearing the end of their evolution before becoming core-collapse supernovae. Projects are available to examine and model JWST, ALMA or data from other observatories on these intricate dust structures imaged at a range of wavelengths to better understand their physical properties, mechanisms of production and subsequent evolution.
References:	Some papers on exoplanet systems and imaging their disks • An elusive clump of dust and gas inhabits the debris disk in an alien planetary system, and work is still ongoing to figure out which way it is moving, if at all: https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/519/3/3257/6960576 • The James Webb Space Telescope provided a sharp view of another alien planetary system, with the unique razor-thin edge-on view revealing otherwise hidden dynamics in the planetary system: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-3881/aced08 • Other Solar Systems are so far away that we cannot view their geometry from every possible angle, but computationally we can still try to figure out their 3D structure: https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/511/4/4921/6526880 Some papers on imaging exquisite dust structures from massive stars • Tracking the expansion of a dusty nebula after its production by a violent duo of massive stars: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05155-5 • The James Webb Space Telescope revealed a long but regular history of dust production demonstrated by eerie ring-like structures: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-022-01812-x • The colliding-wind binary Apep produces spiral-shaped dust shells that are among the most intricately structured known to stellar physics: https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/498/4/5604/5917924
Student Requirements:	• A background in physics would help better understand astrophysical processes. • Some basic programming experience in Python would help with working with data or computation, though this is not necessary. • Being interested in astronomy :D
Programs:	This AO can be done under the following programs:   Program    Available To        SURF    both Caltech and non-Caltech students  Click on a program name for program info and application requirements.