Utah Aurora - May 10/11 2024

BYU Astronomy Research Group Joins the Astrophysical Research Consortium (ARC)

As of January 2021 BYU will be a member of the ARC Consortium (Link to Consortium) with access to the ARC 3.5-m telescope and the 0.5-m ARCSAT telescope.  The primary use of the ARC 3.5-m telescope time is for graduate student projects.  This provides a wide array of instrumentation that is currently being used to study objects in the solar system all the way to studies of the large scale structure of the Universe.

Other BYU Astronomy Facilities

In addition to our telescope time from the ARC consortium, we operate a number of our own astronomical facilities

West Mountain Observatory (West Mountain)

This is our mountain observatory at about 6600 ft above sea level.  This consists of three telescopes: 0.9-m, 0.5-m, and a 0.32-m. It is a 40 minute drive that ends in a 5 miles drive up a dirt road. The mountain itself can be seen from campus. We don't provide any tours of this facility.

Orson Pratt Observatory

The Orson Pratt Observatory is named for an early apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  It is our campus telescope facility and contains a wide variety of telescopes for student research and public outreach. We operate a 24" PlaneWave telescope in the main campus dome, plus a 16", two 12", one 8", and a 6" telescope on our observation deck.  The telescopes are all fully robotic. Beyond this we have a large sections of telescopes used on public nights.

Royden G. Derrick Planetarium (Planetarium)

This is a 119 seat, 39" dome planetarium with acoustically treated walls to allow it's use as a lecture room. Recently we upgraded to an E&S Digistar7 operating system with 4K projectors.  The planetarium is used for teaching classes, public outreach, and astronomy education research projects.





Selected Publications

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Reddening study of a bright high galactic latitude nebula: LBN 434
Eric. G. Hintz, Peter W. A. Roming, and J. Ward Moody (et al.)
A high galactic latitude nebula, Lynds Bright Nebula 434, was found to lie over part of the rich cluster of galaxies Abell 2657 [Hintz et al. AJ (submitted) (1997)]. To examine the effects of this nebula upon the cluster we have mapped the excited gas and dust in the region of the cluster using an H alpha filter and CCD. Additionally, UBVR observations were taken to estimate the reddening in this region. Using late-type stars in the field of the cluster we found a maximum E(B - V) value of 0.(m)35 within the visible nebulosity. We show that this amount of reddening is sufficient to cause the effects on the luminosity function of Abell 2657 detailed in Hintz ct al. (1997). In addition, we estimate that the nebula is approximately 250 pc in distance and has a physical diameter of about 7 pc. (C) 1997 American Astronomical Society.
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Discovery of a faint carbon star at high galactic latitude
J. Ward Moody (et al.)
We report the discovery of a faint carbon star, designated CV 5, located at galactic latitude +81 degrees. Eight angstrom resolution optical spectra show C-2 bandheads at lambda 4737, lambda 5165, lambda 5635, and lambda 6191 Angstrom although the latter bandhead is harder to identify because of blending. Spectral indices indicate that it possesses a temperature of approximately 2600 degrees K and an extremely high carbon abundance. Its proper motion was measured and an upper limit of 0.025 ''/yr was found. Although a lambda 6191 Angstrom bandhead as strong as is observed in this star is indicative of dwarf carbon star, the small proper motion causes us to conclude that CV 5 is most likely a halo giant. (C) 1997 American Astronomical Society.
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Time-series ensemble photometry of SX phoenicis stars .1. BL Camelopardalis
Eric G. Hintz, Michael D. Joner, D. Harold McNamara, Kenneth A. Nelson, J. Ward Moody, and Chulhee Kim

We present an analysis of the multiperiodic SX Phoenicis star BL Camelopardalis (GD 428). Along with 24 times of maximum light from archival data, six previously unpublished times of maximum light from photomultiplier observations and 39 new CCD observations of maximum light are reported. The new CCD observations indicate that BL Cam is a double-mode variable with a primary period of 0.0391 day, a secondary period of 0.0306 day, and a pi(1)/pi(0) ratio of 0.783. The relation between metallicity and period ratio for large-amplitude delta Scuti variables is examined in detail. Finally, evidence is presented that the fundamental period pi(0) has increased by 0.009 s in the last 20 years.

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Imaging Soft X-Rays Using a Microchannel Plate
Maureen L. Hintz, Daniel S. Olsen, J. Ward Moody, and David W. Madsen

The GOLDHELOX Project is a student run project to construct a robotic solar telescope that will be used to take images of the sun in the soft X-ray region (171–181Å) of the spectrum. The optical system uses a microchannel plate (MCP) detector. We tested the MCP to familiarize ourselves with and verify that MCP's can be used to image soft X-rays. Soft X-rays were created by a Manson source attached to a proportional counter to determine the amount of emitted X-rays detected by the MCP. The voltages on the MCP were varied to observe responses of varying voltage differences. Most of the observations were visible observations along with images made by a 35 mm camera with a telephoto lens. We found the 1000 V difference to produce the strongest and clearest images.

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NASA G-133 "GoldHelox": A Project Update
M. K. Spute, M. L. Hintz, P. W. A. Roming, T. Lloyd, R. S. Turley, J. W. Moody, A. Raines, T. J. Utley, Jr., P. F. Eastman, and V. Jensen

NASA G-133, also known as the "GoldHelox Project", is a fully autonomous, soft X-ray, solar telescope designed for use on board the space shuttle. Conceived, designed and built by students at Brigham Young University, it will image the sun with a spatial resolution of 2.5 arc-seconds with a temporal resolution of one second. The instrument will image X-rays with wavelengths between 171Å and 181Å coming from highly ionized Fe lines in the sun's corona. Data will consist of several hundred high resolution photographs that will help in understanding the initial phases of solar flares, and the relationship between solar flares and the physics of the coronal-chromospheric transition region. This paper briefly outlines the project's goals, gives a brief overview of the construction and operation of the instrument and addresses the unique aspects of running a predominantly undergraduate research project. It summarizes the lessons learned to date, and the current project status.

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Evidence for mass outflow from the nucleus of M101: Knots, rings, and a geyser
J. Ward Moody, Peter W. A. Roming, Michael D. Joner, and Eric G. Hintz (et al.)
H alpha on-line and off-line CCD images of M101 obtained with the Canada-France-Hawaii 3.6 m telescope show the presence of two H alpha bright, filled knots paired Linearly across the nucleus in a north-south orientation. The knots are centered 2.4 '' (85 pc, assuming a distance to M101 of 7.4 Mpc) from the nucleus and lie roughly perpendicular to an east-west molecular bar. Each knot in turn is connected to an elongated, photoionized ring lying parallel along the bar. The eastern ring, connected to the southern knot, reaches outward in a well-defined 500X200 pc oval. The 700X300 pc western ring, connected to the northern knot, is more broken and dissipated in the middle. An arc containing blue stars and/or significant H alpha absorption lies along the southern side of a dust lane extending from the nucleus westward along the bar. Hubble Space Telescope Planetary Camera image data show pockets of star-forming regions to the east and to the south of the nucleus which are associated with the knot and ring in that half. The imaging data, together with velocity data obtained with the Coude' feed spectrometer at Kitt Peak National Observatory show that the knots and rings are likely a bipolar outflow originating from a velocity <100 km s(-1) ''geyser'' which has a period of approximately 22 million years and is located in the nucleus. The geyser may be caused by a mass <10(6) M(.) black hole orbiting within the nucleus, sweeping material from the molecular bar. (C) 1995 American Astronomical Society.