Project Description: Brown dwarfs are substellar objects that bridge the gap between the coolest stars and planets like Jupiter. These Jupiter-sized worlds are primarily composed of various molecular gases and gradually cool over time as they age. HD 130948A is a Sun-like star hosting two co-orbiting brown dwarfs, HD 130948 B and C. The properties of the host (A) are well constrained, and the mass of the companions (B+C) are known, making this an observational benchmark system for testing theory. The intern will be responsible for reducing new mid-infrared (M-band, 4.5 micron) images of the system (AB and C) taken with LMIRCam on the Large Binocular Telescope. The reduced images will be used to estimate the brightness of the brown dwarf companions. The new M-band photometry will be combined with previously published observations to compare different atmospheric and evolutionary models. The Sonora Diamondback models will be used to understand if HD 130948 B and C have cloudy atmospheres.
NASA Relevance: As a benchmark system, HD 130948 is important for testing models that are also used for understanding gas giant exoplanets.
Work Description:
1) Working with fits files in python on another preferred language to manipulate astronomical images.
2) Reading in atmospheric model text files and converting them to relevant units.
3) Compiling filter information for convert atmospheric models into photometry to compare with data.
Open or Reserved Project: Open, 1 position