Astronomy Tea Talk
Speaker 1: Oryna Ivashtenko
Title: An independent search for small long-period planets in Kepler data
Abstract:
Kepler spacecraft provided an unprecedented photometric precision aimed to find Earth-like planets. However, estimating the occurrence rate of such planets remains a challenging task due to the insufficient reliability of the Kepler catalog for candidates with low signal-to-noise. In our work, we address one of the main reasons for this issue: the inability to distinguish faint signals from the false alarms originating from the correlated and non-gaussian noise.
We developed an independent search and vetting pipeline aimed at constructing a more reliable catalog of small long-period planets. Our pipeline implements precise statistical methods similar to the ones used in gravitational wave searches. It takes into account the correlations and the non-gaussianity of the noise and provides a prior-informed detection score with a controlled background distribution.
In my talk, I will present the key methods of the search pipeline and describe its performance. Then, I will present the catalog of planetary candidates detected by the pipeline that will be used in the future to re-evaluate the occurrence rate.
Speaker 2: Shishir Dholakia
Title: Detecting and Characterizing Intermediate-period Companions to Stars with Space-based Photometry
Abstract:
Both stellar and exoplanetary intermediate (10-1000 day) orbital period companions to stars are scientifically valuable yet challenging to identify and characterize. In my talk, I will motivate and describe efforts to study these companions with various photometric methods, including detecting stellar companions with pulsation timing, detecting and finding the occurrence of intermediate-period exoplanets around cool stars, and characterizing exoplanetary rotation from oblateness.
Speaker 3: Guillem Megias i Homar
Title: Early On-Sky Results from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory Commissioning Campaign
Abstract:
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, designed to carry out the 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), aims to address some of the most profound questions in astrophysics, including the nature of dark matter, the properties of dark energy, and the origins of transient phenomena. Achieving these scientific goals requires exceptional image quality and sharp point spread function (PSF), both of which depend critically on the observatory's innovative Active Optics System (AOS).
This presentation will share early on-sky results from the AOS commissioning campaign, conducted with the Commissioning Camera (ComCam) between October and December 2024. I will discuss the challenges of aligning and optimizing the 8.4-meter optical system, present key performance metrics, and address system limitations encountered during this phase. These initial results have demonstrated the system's potential to meet Rubin's image quality requirements. Attendees will gain insights into the lessons learned, technical challenges faced, and the next steps in the commissioning process, including preparations for integrating the LSSTCam and transitioning to full scientific operations in Fall 2025.