CDS&E: Peculiar galaxy detection in digital sky surveys

Kansas State University, Manhattan KS

Investigators

Abstract

Digital sky surveys are increasingly pivotal in astronomy, but existing computational methodologies are unable effectively to analyze the resultant extremely large databases. This project will develop and apply methods that combine the analysis of imaging, photometric, and spectroscopic data to mine astronomical databases and detect peculiar celestial objects of scientific value. Peculiar galaxies are very different from the majority of galaxies and carry crucial information about the interactions of objects, their formation, and their evolutionary history. They are important for addressing fundamental questions about the early, present, and future universe. Software and source code developed in this project will be open to the community. The principal investigator has been leading high-impact inclusion and diversity programs that engage students from underrepresented minorities. The present project will strengthen these student experiences, continuing to use research as a tool for increasing diversity and inclusion. Algorithms, both new and already developed with previous NSF support, will be applied to the most significant existing digital sky surveys, including the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (PanSTARRS), and the Dark Energy Survey (DES), and will be prepared for the future, notably for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), the most powerful astronomical imaging device and the primary NSF astronomical project for the decade. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.