ASTR 597 A: Topics in Observational Astrophysics

TOPIC: ASTRONOMY WITH RUBIN OBSERVATORY AND LSST --- THE VERA C. RUBIN OBSERVATORY WILL BEGIN ITS LEGACY SURVEY OF SPACE AND TIME (LSST) IN 2024 FOLLOWING A YEAR'S COMMISSIONING EFFORT. THE LSST WILL PROVIDE AN UNPRECEDENTED WIDE, FAST, AND DEEP SURVEY OF THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE SKY AND ENABLE GROUNDBREAKING NEW DISCOVERIES IN COSMOLOGY, TIME-DOMAIN ASTROPHYSICS SOLAR SYSTEM SCIENCE, AND GALACTIC STRUCTURE. IN THIS COURSE YOU WILL PREPARE TO MAKE SOME OF THESE DISCOVERIES YOURSELF! WE WILL STUD THE CAPABILITIES OF THE RUBIN OBSERVATORY AND THE DETAILS OF ITS SURVEYS AND DATA PRODUCTS BEFORE DIGGING DEEPLY INTO SPECIFIC SCIENTIFIC OPPORTUNITIES. STUDENTS WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PREPAR ANALYSES AND DRAFT PAPERS AND PROPOSALS IN ANTICIPATION OF FORTHCOMING RUBIN DATA