About

My research interests in the past have focused on detecting and following-up unusual microlensing events in real-time (with MACHO, GMAN, and MPS). However, my pursuits have since broadened to the generalized problem of detecting and classifying astronomical variability regardless of type (with DLS, SDSS, and LSST). In particular, if one wants to recognize rare classes of transient events, the background of more prosaic astronomical variability must first be recognized and removed. Modern surveys that simultaneously survey faint, fast, and wide are now at a threshold where we expect these new sorts of discoveries. Accomplishing this will require advances in the integration of computing and information management necessary to extract and model astronomical variability information in real-time.

Recent Science Highlight : Aug 27, 2008

We've been getting even more PR regarding a Solar System object we found in the SDSS Supernova Survey, 2006 SQ372 . Including here, here, and here.

As with all press, there should be some scientific clarifications. First, this is not the first Oort Cloud object ever found. The family of Long Period Comets is thought to originate from the Oort Cloud as well; they are so loosely bound to the Sun that a passing gravitational perturbation can shift their perihelia past Jupiter/Saturn and into the inner Solar System where we see them as comets. Sedna is also arguably an Oort Cloud object, since its detached from interactions with current Solar System planets. As always, the syntax (comet, TNO, minor planet, inner Oort Cloud, outer Oort Cloud) can be severely limiting.

What we've done in the study of this object is simulate objects on orbits like this one (viewing it in semi-major axis [a] vs perihelion [q] space) from the trans-Neptunian scattered disk, as well as from the Oort Cloud. What we find is that, as expected, we can form 2006 SQ372 orbits from both populations of objects (this has been noted on several of the articles, that it could just be an object scattered from the trans-Neptunian disk). However, what we find is that objects on orbits like this one are *far* more likely to originate from the Oort Cloud. So while we can't say for sure that this particular object came from the Oort Cloud, we can say that objects on orbits like this one (again viewed in a vs q) come from the Oort Cloud in a greater than 50 to 1 ratio.

In addition, it probably was scattered in from that part of the Oort Cloud with a < 10,000 AU. I.e. the "inner" part. This portion is more tightly bound to the Sun, and responds to gravitational perturbations with more subtle shifts in orbit. Thus they can't skip past Jupiter/Saturn, actually tend to encounter them, and are then scattered out of the Solar System. So the only way to get a handle on this population is to see them before they get too close to Jupiter/Saturn. This is the case with 2006 SQ372.

Hope this clarifies things! Paper to be on astro-ph soon.

Other, not so recent news...

Thesis

My thesis work was on Exotic Gravitational Microlensing Effects as a Probe of Stellar and Galactic Structure.

Download Thesis
Postscript File, 53M (7M gzipped)

Contact

Andrew Becker (becker at astro dot washington dot edu)
Room : C327
Phone : 206 685 0542
FAX : 206 685 0403

Astronomy Dept.
University of Washington
Box 351580
3910 15th Ave NE (if you really need an address for shipping)
Seattle WA 98195-1580


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