Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100205
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$367,000.00
Summary
Searching for Life on Mars on Earth. Australia continues to play a world-leading role in researching planetary habitability. This project will deliver the most comprehensive investigation of Earth’s oldest known river/lake deposits, uniquely preserved in 2.8 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia. Using the candidate’s expertise in field investigation in combination with a cutting-edge analytical approach, the project will produce a detailed reconstruction of the ancient lake environment. S ....Searching for Life on Mars on Earth. Australia continues to play a world-leading role in researching planetary habitability. This project will deliver the most comprehensive investigation of Earth’s oldest known river/lake deposits, uniquely preserved in 2.8 billion-year-old rocks in Western Australia. Using the candidate’s expertise in field investigation in combination with a cutting-edge analytical approach, the project will produce a detailed reconstruction of the ancient lake environment. Similar settings will be explored by NASA's upcoming Mars 2020 rover mission at it's landing site in Jezero Crater. Mission data will be analysed by the candidate, who will guide the selection of samples and address the overarching question of whether microbal life ever existed on Mars.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160101585
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$388,463.00
Summary
Harnessing Astrophotonics and Adaptive Optics to Discover Habitable Planets. This project aims to improve spectrographic design in order to increase precision in astronomical research. The discovery of Earth's twin, a habitable world in another stellar system, is one of the most remarkable scientific endeavours of our time. The gravitational tug of the planet on its host star causes a periodic Doppler shift of the star’s spectrum which is recorded using spectrographs. The instrumental precision ....Harnessing Astrophotonics and Adaptive Optics to Discover Habitable Planets. This project aims to improve spectrographic design in order to increase precision in astronomical research. The discovery of Earth's twin, a habitable world in another stellar system, is one of the most remarkable scientific endeavours of our time. The gravitational tug of the planet on its host star causes a periodic Doppler shift of the star’s spectrum which is recorded using spectrographs. The instrumental precision required to detect an Earth-like planet is a few centimetres per second, significantly better than the best current spectrographs can provide. This project plans to combine novel technologies from adaptive optics and astrophotonics into an innovative spectrograph design that will improve Doppler precision by a factor of ten, sufficient to find planets.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101960
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$332,820.00
Summary
Computational geophysical and astrophysical fluid dynamics at the petascale. The rise of petascale computing provides great potential for new insight, provided one can harness the resources. This project will develop a state-of-the-art computational framework for solving general partial differential equations relevant to many contemporary applications in astrophysics and the geosciences. This project will design a toolkit for maximum extensibility by a large community of scientists and applied m ....Computational geophysical and astrophysical fluid dynamics at the petascale. The rise of petascale computing provides great potential for new insight, provided one can harness the resources. This project will develop a state-of-the-art computational framework for solving general partial differential equations relevant to many contemporary applications in astrophysics and the geosciences. This project will design a toolkit for maximum extensibility by a large community of scientists and applied mathematicians. Building a highly flexible framework allows the agile design and side-by-side comparison of new mathematical models and computational algorithms. This project will employ the new framework on a number of key science areas such as the dynamics of solar magnetism, and tidal interactions in stars and planetary interiors.Read moreRead less
Characterization of extrasolar planets using high-precision polarimetry. Close to a thousand exoplanets have been found since the discovery of a planet around a Sun-like star, 51 Peg in 1995. With the Kepler space telescope, we are now capable of finding Earth-size worlds around other stars. But how do we know if these Earth-like planets have all the right ingredients for life like ours to flourish? Polarimetry is a powerful method of exoplanet characterisation that could one day answer such que ....Characterization of extrasolar planets using high-precision polarimetry. Close to a thousand exoplanets have been found since the discovery of a planet around a Sun-like star, 51 Peg in 1995. With the Kepler space telescope, we are now capable of finding Earth-size worlds around other stars. But how do we know if these Earth-like planets have all the right ingredients for life like ours to flourish? Polarimetry is a powerful method of exoplanet characterisation that could one day answer such questions and can be applied, right now, to the giant planets. An innovative, portable polarimeter will be developed, that will be used to understand the atmospheric composition of exoplanets. Polarimetry is a promising method, which in the future may be the first method that can detect liquid water on extrasolar planets.Read moreRead less
Lunar crustal structure from high-res gravity, topography, and seismic data. This project aims to improve our knowledge of the Moon, including its surface processes, interior structure, modification by geological processes and creation and evolution. The Moon preserves the longest and cleanest records of surface geology in the Solar System’s history, unlike the Earth. The lunar crust should exhibit strong heterogeneity in density (both porosity and composition) given its complex history of impac ....Lunar crustal structure from high-res gravity, topography, and seismic data. This project aims to improve our knowledge of the Moon, including its surface processes, interior structure, modification by geological processes and creation and evolution. The Moon preserves the longest and cleanest records of surface geology in the Solar System’s history, unlike the Earth. The lunar crust should exhibit strong heterogeneity in density (both porosity and composition) given its complex history of impact bombardment and volcanism. This project aims to determine radial and lateral heterogeneity in density and porosity within the Moon's crust, by analysing Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory gravity and spacecraft tracking data, Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter topography and in situ Apollo seismological data.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100301
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$335,000.00
Summary
Planetary Nitrile Chemistry: Synchrotron Spectroscopic Investigations. Observed in planetary atmospheres such as Saturn's moon Titan, cyanide-based aerosols undergo photolytic processing to generate complex organic material of prebiotic interest. However, dedicated spectroscopic experiments directed at nitrile aerosol analogues have not been performed to date. To bridge this gap, a custom cooling cell at the Australian Synchrotron will be used to investigate condensed-phase nitriles at Titan con ....Planetary Nitrile Chemistry: Synchrotron Spectroscopic Investigations. Observed in planetary atmospheres such as Saturn's moon Titan, cyanide-based aerosols undergo photolytic processing to generate complex organic material of prebiotic interest. However, dedicated spectroscopic experiments directed at nitrile aerosol analogues have not been performed to date. To bridge this gap, a custom cooling cell at the Australian Synchrotron will be used to investigate condensed-phase nitriles at Titan conditions. Laser irradiation of nitrile ice particles will then follow; designed to simulate photochemical processes in the Titan atmosphere. The project aims to use data compiled for nitrile aerosols and their photolytic products to assist in assigning these species to unconfirmed bands within infrared surveys of planetary environments.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100064
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$450,000.00
Summary
A facility for sensitive and precise isotopic dating of the earth's and extraterrestrial rocks. SPIDE2R will be a new generation mass spectrometer for very precise and sensitive dating and forensics applications in earth and planetary sciences, hydrology, climate studies, and nuclear and archaeological fingerprinting. The unprecedented sensitivity of this unique instrument will provide enhanced capabilities for solving long-standing problems requiring precise geological time resolution, as well ....A facility for sensitive and precise isotopic dating of the earth's and extraterrestrial rocks. SPIDE2R will be a new generation mass spectrometer for very precise and sensitive dating and forensics applications in earth and planetary sciences, hydrology, climate studies, and nuclear and archaeological fingerprinting. The unprecedented sensitivity of this unique instrument will provide enhanced capabilities for solving long-standing problems requiring precise geological time resolution, as well as opening new areas of research. It will be the instrument of choice for analysing small, rare samples such as those returned by space missions. The Australian-built high sensitivity source and ion detection systems can be retrofitted onto other mass spectrometers, opening a new area of commercialisation.Read moreRead less
Revealing the deep Earth in deep time. This project aims to determine the nature of the chemical and dynamical transformation of the Earth’s interior at the end of the first 25 per cent of its history. This will provide a new understanding of the related establishment of modern surface features such as extensive continents and an oxygenated atmosphere, as well as investigate causal relationships with west Australia’s mineral resources. The expected outcome will be a significant new understandin ....Revealing the deep Earth in deep time. This project aims to determine the nature of the chemical and dynamical transformation of the Earth’s interior at the end of the first 25 per cent of its history. This will provide a new understanding of the related establishment of modern surface features such as extensive continents and an oxygenated atmosphere, as well as investigate causal relationships with west Australia’s mineral resources. The expected outcome will be a significant new understanding of the chemical and thermal history of our planet.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE170100106
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$780,000.00
Summary
A global fireball observatory. This project aims to expand the Desert Fireball Network (DFN) and build a Global Fireball Observatory. Nearly everything known about the origin and evolution of the solar system comes from analysis of meteorite falls, but scientists have almost no constraint on where they come from. This project will address this constraint by tracking hundreds of meteorite falls, and pinpointing each one’s origin in the solar system. Benefits include capitalising on the innovation ....A global fireball observatory. This project aims to expand the Desert Fireball Network (DFN) and build a Global Fireball Observatory. Nearly everything known about the origin and evolution of the solar system comes from analysis of meteorite falls, but scientists have almost no constraint on where they come from. This project will address this constraint by tracking hundreds of meteorite falls, and pinpointing each one’s origin in the solar system. Benefits include capitalising on the innovations and technologies that underpinned the DFN, and leveraging a NASA partnership for administrative support and advanced instrumentation development. Tracking for space situational awareness is also expected to benefit Australian national security.Read moreRead less
Structure of crust on Mars. This project aims to start a new multidisciplinary field linking impact physics and seismology. This project involves numerical modelling of meteoroid impact-induced seismic activity on Mars, using the state-of-the-art hydro-code, a national supercomputing facility, and knowledge built on the meteorite hunting by the Dessert Fireball Network. High-resolution numerical results will aid the analyses of impact-seismic data obtained by the forthcoming InSight mission to M ....Structure of crust on Mars. This project aims to start a new multidisciplinary field linking impact physics and seismology. This project involves numerical modelling of meteoroid impact-induced seismic activity on Mars, using the state-of-the-art hydro-code, a national supercomputing facility, and knowledge built on the meteorite hunting by the Dessert Fireball Network. High-resolution numerical results will aid the analyses of impact-seismic data obtained by the forthcoming InSight mission to Mars (in 2018) with a single important aim, to decipher the crustal structure of Mars, the planet that is the most similar to the Earth in our solar system.Read moreRead less