Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100004
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$350,000.00
Summary
Uncovering the enigmatic origins of the brightest supernovae. This project aims to uncover the origins of extremely bright supernovae called superluminous supernovae. How and why massive stars end their lives as superluminous supernovae is unknown. Based on their shapes and similarities to other peculiar supernovae, this project should clarify the mechanisms that lead massive stars to explode as superluminous supernovae. The project also aims to develop superluminous supernovae as a tool to inve ....Uncovering the enigmatic origins of the brightest supernovae. This project aims to uncover the origins of extremely bright supernovae called superluminous supernovae. How and why massive stars end their lives as superluminous supernovae is unknown. Based on their shapes and similarities to other peculiar supernovae, this project should clarify the mechanisms that lead massive stars to explode as superluminous supernovae. The project also aims to develop superluminous supernovae as a tool to investigate the distant universe. By observing superluminous supernovae in the distant universe, this project should address the properties of the first generation stars in the universe and advance our understanding of stellar evolution, supernovae, and the early universe.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140100598
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$346,980.00
Summary
The GALAH survey: A million-star exploration of Galactic history. The GALactic Archaeology with HERMES (GALAH) survey is an observational study of the orbital motions and chemical compositions of a million stars in our Galaxy, set to begin in late 2013. This type of data is central to understanding how star formation, stellar migration and galaxy mergers have shaped the Milky Way. The unprecedented scale of this new survey will allow an extraordinarily clear view into Galactic history. This proj ....The GALAH survey: A million-star exploration of Galactic history. The GALactic Archaeology with HERMES (GALAH) survey is an observational study of the orbital motions and chemical compositions of a million stars in our Galaxy, set to begin in late 2013. This type of data is central to understanding how star formation, stellar migration and galaxy mergers have shaped the Milky Way. The unprecedented scale of this new survey will allow an extraordinarily clear view into Galactic history. This project will use this data to make the first definitive determination of the role of minor galaxy mergers in the assembly of the Milky Way. Since our own galaxy and its nearest neighbours are the only ones that can be studied at this level of star-by-star detail, the GALAH survey is also a crucial step forward in our understanding of all spiral galaxies.Read moreRead less
Dark matter in spiral galaxies: the mass of their stellar disks. Spiral galaxies are immersed in vast halos of dark matter which make up more than 90% of their mass. The densities of the dark halos reflect the density of the expanding universe at the time when the halos condensed. The gravitational field of spirals and the density of the halos are measured from their rotation curves. For this analysis, the mass of their visible disks must be known, but it has not been possible to measure disk ma ....Dark matter in spiral galaxies: the mass of their stellar disks. Spiral galaxies are immersed in vast halos of dark matter which make up more than 90% of their mass. The densities of the dark halos reflect the density of the expanding universe at the time when the halos condensed. The gravitational field of spirals and the density of the halos are measured from their rotation curves. For this analysis, the mass of their visible disks must be known, but it has not been possible to measure disk masses reliably until now. This project aims to exploit new instruments and improved analysis techniques to measure disk masses and halo densities accurately for the first time, and then to answer a central question of cosmology: when did galaxies of different masses form from the ancient expanding universe?Read moreRead less
Using vast new data samples to understand the disk of the Milky Way. How did disk galaxies like our Milky Way form from the expanding universe? This project seeks to improve our models of this process. Numerical models informed by observation are the key to understanding galaxy formation. The models predict the properties of galaxies in detail, but must be tested and modified relative to the observed motions and chemical properties of stars in the Galactic disk. Adequate data is essential but no ....Using vast new data samples to understand the disk of the Milky Way. How did disk galaxies like our Milky Way form from the expanding universe? This project seeks to improve our models of this process. Numerical models informed by observation are the key to understanding galaxy formation. The models predict the properties of galaxies in detail, but must be tested and modified relative to the observed motions and chemical properties of stars in the Galactic disk. Adequate data is essential but not yet available. This is about to change. This project plans to use observations from two vast new surveys to measure the chemical properties and motions of a million disk stars, in order to inform the numerical models properly. It also plans to use new techniques to search for chemical fingerprints of intense star formation events in galactic disks in the early universe.Read moreRead less
The life-stories of galaxies from stellar fossils. This project aims to derive stellar ages and chemical compositions to draw the precise evolutionary history of the Galaxy, using ongoing observational programmes. Stars hold the key to unveil the events that occurred throughout the history of our Galaxy, from the beginning of time until today. Their atmospheres retain a fossil record of the composition of the interstellar medium at the time of their formation, and the twinkling of their light te ....The life-stories of galaxies from stellar fossils. This project aims to derive stellar ages and chemical compositions to draw the precise evolutionary history of the Galaxy, using ongoing observational programmes. Stars hold the key to unveil the events that occurred throughout the history of our Galaxy, from the beginning of time until today. Their atmospheres retain a fossil record of the composition of the interstellar medium at the time of their formation, and the twinkling of their light tells us about their ages. Combining data from space-borne satellites and large Australian ground-based surveys is expected to lead to understanding of galaxy formation as a whole.Read moreRead less
Explosive evidence: connecting stellar abundances to supernova progenitors. This project aims to determine the evolutionary scenarios of thermonuclear supernovae through numerical simulations. Supernova explosions create heavy elements, such as iron, that enable life on Earth, and are instrumental in proving that the Universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. For all their importance, the nature of their progenitors is still a mystery, which has implications for many fields of astrophysics. ....Explosive evidence: connecting stellar abundances to supernova progenitors. This project aims to determine the evolutionary scenarios of thermonuclear supernovae through numerical simulations. Supernova explosions create heavy elements, such as iron, that enable life on Earth, and are instrumental in proving that the Universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. For all their importance, the nature of their progenitors is still a mystery, which has implications for many fields of astrophysics. Through building inter-institutional and international collaborations, the project is expected to determine where, when, and how often these explosions occur. Benefits will include development of new technological methods and exploitation of Australian-led survey data from national facilities.Read moreRead less
Imaging exoplanets with advanced spaceborne photonics. Discovering new worlds circling distant stars is a key endeavour of modern science. Revealing the ubiquity and diversity of exoplanets has profound implications for our perception of our origins and place in the cosmos. This project will open the first window onto the heartland of expected planetary populations.
ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics. The ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO) will establish Australia as a world-leader in the emerging discipline of wide-field astronomy. CAASTRO will answer fundamental questions about the nature of the Universe, develop innovative ways of processing enormous data-sets, and enable a diverse set of opportunities for students and early career researchers. By bringing Australia's top astronomers together into a focused collabo ....ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics. The ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO) will establish Australia as a world-leader in the emerging discipline of wide-field astronomy. CAASTRO will answer fundamental questions about the nature of the Universe, develop innovative ways of processing enormous data-sets, and enable a diverse set of opportunities for students and early career researchers. By bringing Australia's top astronomers together into a focused collaboration, CAASTRO will cement Australia's reputation as an international leader in astrophysical research, will build unique expertise in wide-field radio and optical astronomy and will position Australia to lead the science programmes planned for the Square Kilometre Array.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100051
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$150,000.00
Summary
A robotic telescope imaging system for rapid response spectroscopy of gamma ray bursts. This project will build and employ a rapid response optical spectrograph on the robotic Zadko Telescope, triggered by satellite and ground based observatories. The instruments will be used to probe the most energetic explosions in the universe and to test non-standard quantum and relativity theories using coincident multi-wavelength observations.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE180100009
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$340,160.00
Summary
Doubling the power of a unique astronomical survey facility. This project aims to double the number of fibres in the spectrograph on the UK Schmidt Telescope and so double the number of stars and galaxies that it can observe simultaneously. This would allow rapid and timely completion of two major projects: the Taipan galaxy survey would be first to test a potential discrepancy in the expansion rate of the universe that may signal new physics, while the FunnelWeb stellar survey would (in tandem ....Doubling the power of a unique astronomical survey facility. This project aims to double the number of fibres in the spectrograph on the UK Schmidt Telescope and so double the number of stars and galaxies that it can observe simultaneously. This would allow rapid and timely completion of two major projects: the Taipan galaxy survey would be first to test a potential discrepancy in the expansion rate of the universe that may signal new physics, while the FunnelWeb stellar survey would (in tandem with two space missions) identify potential nearby exoplanets and trace the history of the Milky Way. The benefits include high scientific impact for the two surveys, international showcasing of the Australian Starbug technology, and a national astronomical survey facility for the next decade.Read moreRead less