EAGER: Undergraduate Astronomy Research and Education through Observation of Jupiter Impact Flashes to Characterize Small-Body Populations in the Outer Solar System

Hampton University, Hampton VA

Investigators

Abstract

The National Science Foundation uses the Early-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) funding mechanism to support exploratory work in its early stages on untested, but potentially transformative, research ideas or approaches. This EAGER project was awarded as a result of the invitation in the Dear Colleague Letter NSF 16-080 to proposers from Historically Black Colleges and Universities to submit proposals that would strengthen research capacity of faculty at the institution. The project at Hampton University aims to detect flashes caused by small objects impacting the giant planet Jupiter. As demonstrated by recent impacts recorded by amateur astronomers, the intensity of impact flashes indicates the size of the impactors; if enough flashes are observed, the measurements will reveal the size distribution of those impactors. This in turn can help understand how the outer solar system has evolved since its formation. The project will facilitate installing a roof-top observatory, in which a telescope will be operated by a team of undergraduate students who will take charge of conducting the Jovian impact survey. The roof-top observatory will also enable the university to host outreach events for local students from elementary and high schools as well as the general public. The project's objective is to measure the size distribution of Jovian impactors, which are thought to be members of the Jupiter Family Comets (JFC) that originate beyond Neptune's orbit. Most JFCs are too dim for direct telescopic observation from Earth, so the project will observe Jupiter impacts to measure the sizes of objects that are otherwise impossible to observe. If the JFC size distribution shows signs of numerous collisions in the past, it would be consistent with the hypothesis that Uranus and Neptune violently migrated outward early in the solar system history and scattered primordial planetesimal objects. If the JFC population contains more small fragments than expected from collisions, it would reveal that most comets eventually break up during their repeated close encounters with the sun. If the JFC population contains few small objects, it would indicate that at least some JFCs have been left undisturbed since the formation of the solar system. The main technical challenge here is to detect a sufficient number of impacts to build a statistically significant size distribution. The goal of the current exploratory project is to reduce uncertainties regarding the number of impacts per year to enable a larger impact survey in the future. This EAGER project is co-funded by the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences.