Current Research
FURST (Full-sun Ultraviolet Rocket SpecTrograph )
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FURST is a NASA suborbital sounding rocket mission set to launch in late 2022. FURST will obtain the first high-resolution, high-quality VUV (vacuum ultraviolet) spectrum of the Sun as a star --- that is, as a single point, placing the Sun in context with other Sun-like stars.
I'm currently involved with optical alignment and instrumental testing of our brassboard model, known as "Zeroth" (zero-based indexing yay), as we spec and obtain the components to build FURST.
IRIS (Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph) Full-Disk Mosaics
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One of the science goals of FURST is the detection of explosive events in the solar transition region. To see if this may be accomplished, I'm developing a detection method using solar data from IRIS, which is a NASA Small Explorer satellite consisting of a high-resolution UV imaging spectrograph that takes monthly full-disk mosaics of the Sun. If the disk-integrated signature of explosive events can be separated from the continuum and instrumental backgrounds, then it will open a window to comparing solar and stellar atmospheres in quiescent conditions.
HST/STIS (Hubble Space Telescope/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph)
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With an explosive event detection method in place, I will investigate HST/STIS data of Sun-like stars, such as Alpha Cen A (shown to the left), and quantify explosive event signatures present in the transition region spectral lines.
ESIS & MOSES-III Launch
ESIS (EUV Snapshot Imaging Spectrograph) & MOSES (Multi-Order Solar EUV Spectrograph) III
Launched 09.30.2019 at 18:04 UTC from White Sands Missile Range (WSMR)
I was recently welcomed to the MSU ESIS/MOSES-III team and assisted with launch preparations at White Sands Launch Complex 36. My job was to help with cooling and pulling vacuum on the experiment section of the rocket. This was an incredible experience and gave me insight into what to expect for our launch of FURST!
That's me! Wow!
Experiment Team!
