Stellar Rotation with ZTF and Rubin

American Museum Natural History, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

Principal Investigators (PIs) Angus and Curtis are studying cool dwarf stars, the most common and most poorly understood stars in the Galaxy. They will measure the rotation periods for approximately 100,000 stars using data from the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) to understand the rotation history and evolution of the stars. There is a mysterious gap in the rotation period distribution of M dwarf stars and they hope to shed light on its origin. It could be caused by a change in the stellar structure or magnetism or due to the local star formation history. They will create and distribute a stellar rotation catalog which will provide data suitable for calibrating the stellar age-rotation relation. This lays the groundwork for future surveys using data from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory which has the potential to determine the ages of billions of stars. The PIs will collaborate with six astronomers and six artists to develop science stories about the ZTF and the Rubin Observatory. The stories will be available online as part of the American Museum of Natural History’s SciCafe Public Program. The PIs will analyze data for 1 million stars observed by the ZTF and they will publish a catalog of the rotation periods for approximately 100,000 FGKM dwarfs out to distances of 3 kpc. This catalog will increase the number of field M dwarf rotation periods by two orders of magnitude. The PIs will provide open-source software for light curve creation, multi-band rotation period detection, and validation tools applicable to data from both the ZTF and the Rubin Observatory. 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.