Research

Scientists at the Center for Solar-Stellar Connections conduct basic scientific research in astrophysics, including both observational and theoretical studies. Activities include: scientific data analysis and software development, travel to astronomical observatories and scientific conferences, and publication of results in peer-reviewed journals.

Education

Scientists at the Center for Solar-Stellar Connections regularly engage in both formal and informal education. Activities include: mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, writing popular articles for a variety of publications, and delivering informal presentations to science enthusiasts online and through local venues.

Facilities

For observational work, we use data from the Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope (LCOGT) network, 21 robotic telescopes at 8 sites around the world working together as a single instrument. Community access to this facility is currently organized through the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) with support from NSF.

For theoretical work, we use the Stampede supercomputer at the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC). This NSF-supported community facility provides the computing power behind our Asteroseismic Modeling Portal (AMP). We recently updated AMP to utilize the open-source MESA stellar evolution code.