space physics and astronomy dr. darrel smith, chair department of physics college of arts &...
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Space Physics and Astronomy
Dr. Darrel Smith, ChairDepartment of Physics
College of Arts & Sciences
Temasek Polytechnic Visit
September 6, 2013
Areas of Undergraduate Research
1. Astronomy
2. Gravitational Physics/Cosmology
3. Space Propulsion Systems
4. Particle Astrophysics / LIGO
On the web: http://physicsx.pr.erau.edu/SpacePhysics/
Summer Internships
The MiniBooNE DetectorAt Fermilab
Gravitational Waves sensing with LIGO
LIGO Livingston Observatory
LIGO Hanford Observatory
"Colliding Black Holes“ Credit: National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA)
Dr. Andri GretarssonDr. Brennan HugheyDr. Michele Zanolin
Relativity violations imply a modified acceleration on Earth
Atom interferometers can measure daily changes in the local gravitational acceleration on Earth arising from violations of the laws of Relativity. This was recently studied by a group of Stanford physicists using atom interferometers.
Pulsed Plasma Thrusters (PPTs)Zachery Northern
Exotic Propulsion
at ERAU Prescott
Matter-Antimatter PropulsionMatt Boyd
Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP)Theoretical Modeling
Steven Walton
Road Trips (Los Alamos Nat’l Lab)
Road Trips (JPL--Pasadena, CA)
1. Society of Physics Students2. Sigma-Pi-Sigma (Honors Society)
Road Trips
Space Physics Program
On the web: http://physicsx.pr.erau.edu/SpacePhysics/
This is a 4-year program. 120 credit hours
You will want to average ~15 credit hours per semester.
Many students are involved in undergraduate research projects before their senior year.
Astronomy Program (New Program)
1. Starting Fall 20132. Combination of Astronomy and Astrophysics3. Dr. Brian Rachford (Program Chair)
Astronomy Program
Undergraduate Research Projects
1. Funded Hubble Space Telescope (NASA)Search for super–massive black holes, and galaxy formation.
2. Kepler Project (Caltech) Search for extra-solar planets
3. Diffuse Interstellar Bands (DIBs) in collaboration with CU Boulder, Univ. of Chicago and other institutions.
Dr. Brian Rachford (Program Chair)Dr. Nick Devereux
Astronomy Program
Our Observatory (Variable light sources)
1. Extra-Solar Planets
2. Eclipsing Binary Stars
3. Variable Stars (varying light output-intrinsic to the star)
Dr. Brian Rachford (Program Chair)Dr. Nick Devereux
Astronomy Program
Research Experience for Undergraduates (Summer)
1. NSF supported REU summer internships
2. NASA supported summer internships
Program is already developed inside the Space Physics program
1. Students have already published in peer-reviewed journals.
2. Observatory, Radio Telescopes, and antenna arrays are alreadyup and running.
Physics and Astronomy
1. Prepare students for jobsin industry and labs.
2. Prepare students for graduate school
Graduate RecordsExams (GREs)