Research

I am interested in characterizing the physical processes that shape protoplanetary disks to better understand how the current exoplanet population, and our own solar system, came to be. I primarily use ALMA to study line-emission from resolved disks, which allows me to interpret kinematic signatures, 2-D structure, and the chemical composition of these disks. These observations allow us to better understand planet formation, molecular emission surfaces, thermal structure, disk winds, turbulence, and more.

Current

exoALMA

exoALMA V: Gaseous Emission Surfaces and Temperature Profiles

I am part of the exoALMA collaboration, an ALMA large program focused on detecting still-forming exoplanets. My work focuses on the gaseous emission surfaces and temperature structures of the fifteen protoplanetary disks covered by this program.

Winds Shape Planet Formation

MAPS: Complex Kinematics in the AS 209 Disk Induced by a Forming Planet and Disk Winds

A kinematic analysis of the AS209 disk revealed strong winds in the vertical direction, coinciding with a gap seen in 12CO. These winds, likely launched by magnetohyrdodynamic (MHD) effects, may have a direct impact on the still-forming planet detected within the disk (AS209-b).

Past

The Chemistry of Star Formation

A Survey of Deuterated Ammonia in the Cepheus Star-Forming Region L1251

While at the University of Arizona I worked on understanding early star formation with Dr. Yancy Shirley. Cepheus L1251 is a nearby star forming region with several dense cores that will one day fully collapse to become stars. In the meantime, studying the chemistry within those cores can tell us about the chemical and kinematic evolution of star formation. Using the 12-meter telescope on Kitt Peak, I took observations of the 22 dense-cores to detect deuterated ammonia (o-NH2D). We detected o-NH2D in 13 of the 22 cores, which deepened our understanding of their evolution.

Observations of a 6' by 6' region in Cepheus L1251 with the 12-meter ARO telescope with two dense cores visible.

2021 Submillimeter Array Interferometry School

I attended the 2021 SMA Winter School to better understand radio interferometry! We observed Per-emb-2, a Class 0 protostar in the Perseus molecular cloud. Recent observations of this object revealed a large scale 'streamer' connected to the disk, which has chemical and kinematic implications for the evolution of this object. Streamers are large amounts of material that have recently been observed infalling onto disks; some theorize that they may cause spirals and instabilities within the disks.

We used the 230 GHz band to search for HC3N, CN, SO, and SO2 with the hope of better understanding how these chemicals can help trace the streamer. We ended up detecting two molecules previously unseen in this object--C17O and H2CO!

Observations H2CO in Per-emb-2 with the SMA. Team members: Roman Burridge, Maria Galloway-Sprietsma, Rachel Harrison, Suchitra Narayanan, Evan Rich.

AstroTech Summer Instrumentation School

I attended the 2021 AstroTech Summer Instrumentation School at UC Berkely! I love instrumentation and wanted to better understand optical instrumentation practices. During this week-long school I participated in classes and workshops on CCDs, engineering, data reduction, and team-building. At the end of the week, my team had build an operating spectrometer complete with moving parts and a data-reduction pipeline.

Building a Radio Telescope

Using an old DISH TV antenna, an RTL SDR, and my laptop, I built a functioning radio telescope. To test my design, I conducted a drift scan of the sun. From this scan I was able to calculate the solar flux for that day, and was surprisingly accurate given I was using a TV dish.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse