D I R A C I n s t i t u t e
Data Intensive Research in Astrophysics and Cosmology at the University of Washington
Category: Latest News
Astronomers Thrill at Giant Comet Flying into Our Solar System
By Jonathan O’Callaghan on June 30, 2021 Read the full article in Scientific American. The comet is also a taste of what is to come in the near future of solar system astronomy. In October 2023 a new telescope in Chile called the Vera…
Read MoreAsteroids in the inner solar system by Dr. Sarah Greenstreet
Observations and computer simulations of their orbits and interactions with planets yield insights into the asteroids’ dynamic lives. People tend to think of the solar system as a static environment, in which the orbits of the planets, asteroids, and comets…
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LUNCH + LEARN: Asteroid Discovery with Dr. Lynne Jones
Virtual Event on Wednesday, June 30, 2021at 12:15 PM All the details and the event access links can be found HERE.
Read MoreStreak of lights over Pacific Northwest was Falcon 9 rocket debris
Dr. James Davenport, research assistant professor of astronomy at the UW and DiRAC associate director explains the current event in the KING 5 news coverage.
Read MoreTop-End Assembly (TEA) on the Summit
A major milestone was reached in the construction of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory last week. See the VIDEO here. The “Top End Assembly”, which holds the secondary mirror (M2), was lowered into place within the massive enclosure.
Read More2021-03-08 Seminar: Jeffrey Regier (University of Michigan)
When: Monday, March 8th, 2021 Variational Inference for Cataloging the Visible Universe A key task in astronomy is to locate astronomical objects in images and to characterize them according to physical parameters such as color, apparent magnitude, and morphology. This…
Read MoreEyes to the sky: Vera C. Rubin pipeline facilitates astronomy’s move to big data, from Science Node
DiRAC Researchers featured in Science Node Eyes to the sky: Vera C. Rubin pipeline facilitates astronomy’s move to big data by August Reed “Stories of the single-handed contributions made by astronomy’s greats conjure images of lone figures leaning over telescopes, peering…
Read More2021-02-08 Seminar: Bruce Conway (UIUC)
When: Monday, February 8th, 2021, 2020 Where: https://washington.zoom.us/j/96882498511 Interplanetary Spacecraft Trajectory Design and Optimization There are many types of interplanetary trajectories; e.g. 2-impulse Hohmann transfer (Mars and Venus missions) , impulsive + gravity assist (Galileo & Cassini), impulsive + low-thrust electric…
Read MoreAstronomers document the rise and fall of a rarely observed stellar dance
A team led by Dr. James Davenport, analyzed more than 125 years of observations of HS Hydra, and showed how this system has changed dramatically over the course of just a few generations.
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