Probing the Universe's expansion and gravitational wave sources with ground-based optical telescopes

用地面光学望远镜探测宇宙的膨胀和引力波源

• 批准号: 2308193
• 负责人: Antonella Palmese
• 金额: $ 46.59万
• 依托单位: Carnegie-Mellon University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-08-01 至 2026-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2308193&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Probing; Universe; expansion; gravitational; wave

A research team at Carnegie-Mellon University will carry out an observational campaign of astronomical transient events using primarily the Dark Energy Camera (DECam), with a focus on the gravitational wave (GW) sources that will be detected in the upcoming LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA GW detectors observing run (expected during 2023-2024). So far, only one electromagnetic (EM) counterpart to a GW binary neutron star merger has been confidently identified. The goal of the project is to discover new electromagnetic counterparts to mergers of binary neutron stars, while also searching for the first optical transient events associated with GW neutron star-black hole mergers and massive stellar binary black holes. The team will make use of a state-of-the-art difference imaging software pipeline, and machine learning methods to identify transients and model their light curves. Finally, this program will use the DECam observations, in combination with spectroscopic data from other ground-based facilities and GW data, to study the environment of GW sources to understand the origin of gravitational wave sources, and to produce new measurements of the Hubble constant H0, a measure of the expansion rate of the universe, through a procedure called the standard siren method. As part of this program, the team will provide tutorials based on the new DECam data at local public high schools through the Teachers Training program, and providing outreach to the broader community through public lectures and articles.DECam is one of the very few currently functioning instruments with the capabilities to enable EM counterpart discoveries in the upcoming GW observing run. This project, therefore, serves an important role within the multi-messenger astronomy community. EM counterpart discoveries enable a wide range of scientific analyses that are otherwise inconclusive or impossible with GW data alone. These include constraining (1) the equation of state of neutron stars, (2) modifications to General Relativity, and (3) the production of the heaviest elements in the Universe. This project focuses on addressing two pressing questions in astrophysics: the puzzling “Hubble constant tension”, a discrepancy between values of H0 measured through different probes, and the origin of merging binary systems, whether facilitated by dynamical interactions or by stellar evolution. This award advances the goals of the Windows on the Universe Big Idea.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.

卡内基 - 梅隆大学的一个研究团队将使用一级黑暗能量摄像头（DECAM）进行天文瞬态事件的观察活动，重点是将在即将到来的Ligo/Virgo/Kagra GW检测器中检测到的引力波（GW）来源（预计在2023-2024期间）。到目前为止，只有一个与GW二进制中子星合并合并的电磁（EM）对应物。该项目的目的是发现与二进制中子恒星合并的新电磁对应物，同时还寻找与GW Neutron Star-Black孔合并和大型恒星二进制黑洞相关的第一个光学瞬态事件。该团队将利用最新的差异成像软件管道和机器学习方法来识别瞬变并建模其光曲线。最后，该程序将使用DEDAM观察结果，并结合其他基于地面的设施和GW数据的光谱数据来研究GW源的环境，以了解引力波源的起源，并通过称为标准的Siren Siren Siren方法来实现Hubble常数H0的新测量H0，这是对宇宙扩展率的衡量标准。作为该计划的一部分，该团队将通过教师培训计划根据当地公立高中的新DEDAM数据提供教程，并通过公开讲座和文章向更广泛的社区提供宣传。DECAM是当前具有功能功能的少数功能仪器之一，可以在即将推出的GW Observe Ibserve跑步中启用EM对应物。因此，该项目在多理想者天文学界发挥了重要作用。 EM对应的发现可以实现广泛的科学分析，这些分析本来可以与GW数据无关或不可能。这些包括约束（1）中子恒星状态的方程，（2）对一般相对性的修改以及（3）宇宙中最重的元素的产生。该项目的重点是解决天体物理学中的两个紧迫问题：难题“哈勃恒定张力”，无论是通过动态相互作用还是通过恒星进化来促进，通过不同问题测量的H0值和合并二进制系统的起源之间的差异。奖项促进了宇宙大意上的窗户的目标。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并通过使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响标准来评估诚实地支持了支持。