Lifting the Veil on Cold Planets in the Inner Galaxy. The project aims to explore a unique aspect of exoplanet detection: searches for cold planets of Earth mass and larger in the densest stellar fields of the inner Milky Way. Infrared cameras will be used to detect small planets in this extreme galactic environment. The proposed project will open a new era of infrared microlensing observations from the ground and supply critical data in preparation for the next generation of microlensing from s ....Lifting the Veil on Cold Planets in the Inner Galaxy. The project aims to explore a unique aspect of exoplanet detection: searches for cold planets of Earth mass and larger in the densest stellar fields of the inner Milky Way. Infrared cameras will be used to detect small planets in this extreme galactic environment. The proposed project will open a new era of infrared microlensing observations from the ground and supply critical data in preparation for the next generation of microlensing from space. This work directly links to the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope (2026 launch) Galactic Exoplanet Survey. Expected outcomes are a greatly improved understanding of planet formation down to terrestrial-mass planets, and improved techniques for cold planet detection with gravitational microlensing. Read moreRead less
The Dark-side of the Milky Way. Astronomers have long sought to determine the 3-dimensional structure of our Galaxy, the Milky Way, with limited success owing to its immense size and obscuration by dust at optical wavelengths. We know more about structure of tens of thousands of other galaxies than we do about the structure of the Milky Way on the far-side of the Galactic Centre. This program will use Australian infrastructure to make the most accurate distance measurements to date of the far-si ....The Dark-side of the Milky Way. Astronomers have long sought to determine the 3-dimensional structure of our Galaxy, the Milky Way, with limited success owing to its immense size and obscuration by dust at optical wavelengths. We know more about structure of tens of thousands of other galaxies than we do about the structure of the Milky Way on the far-side of the Galactic Centre. This program will use Australian infrastructure to make the most accurate distance measurements to date of the far-side of the Milky Way visible from the Southern hemisphere, completing the 3-dimensional picture of our Galaxy. These results will be leveraged to yield accurate distances, providing fundamental information on the stellar masses, luminosities, and ages.Read moreRead less
The Occurrence of Cold Planets in the Galaxy. The project aims to explore a unique niche in exoplanet detection: searches for cold planets down to Earth mass, including ice giants and rogue free-floating planets. Infrared cameras and adaptive optics on large telescopes will be used to make accurate measurements of cold planets in diverse galactic environments. These are significant because they are completely different from most known exoplanets, being far from their host stars and unique probes ....The Occurrence of Cold Planets in the Galaxy. The project aims to explore a unique niche in exoplanet detection: searches for cold planets down to Earth mass, including ice giants and rogue free-floating planets. Infrared cameras and adaptive optics on large telescopes will be used to make accurate measurements of cold planets in diverse galactic environments. These are significant because they are completely different from most known exoplanets, being far from their host stars and unique probes of planet formation theory. Expected outcomes are a greatly improved understanding of planet formation, and improved techniques for cold planet detection with gravitational microlensing. The project will strongly benefit the next generation space-based programs planned for the next decade.Read moreRead less
The scale and structure of the Milky Way. This project aims to use new Australian infrastructure to make the most accurate distance measurements to date in the southern Milky Way, completing the three-dimensional picture of our Galaxy. Australia's international standing in astronomy has led to it being one of the host countries for the square kilometre array project, which will bring significant economic and technological benefits to the country. This project builds upon Australia's astronomical ....The scale and structure of the Milky Way. This project aims to use new Australian infrastructure to make the most accurate distance measurements to date in the southern Milky Way, completing the three-dimensional picture of our Galaxy. Australia's international standing in astronomy has led to it being one of the host countries for the square kilometre array project, which will bring significant economic and technological benefits to the country. This project builds upon Australia's astronomical expertise and will provide the most accurate picture to date of the Milky Way. Astronomy provides unique opportunities for engaging the community in discussions of science and society and inspires students to study STEM subjects.Read moreRead less
A survey of the interstellar medium in the Milky Way and Magellanic Clouds using the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder. Between the stars in the Milky Way there are clouds of gas and dust; old stars eject heavy elements into this interstellar medium, and new stars form when interstellar clouds collapse under their own gravity. This survey is making maps of the interstellar gas using spectral lines at radio wavelengths to trace the cycle of star formation.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE110100055
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$275,000.00
Summary
Hidden Earths and distant Suns: a new optical astronomy observatory in Tasmania. This facility at the University of Tasmania will be a remotely operable 1.3 metre optical telescope with a suite of powerful scientific cameras. It will be used to hunt for Earth-like planets around other stars and to study the variability of stars like the Sun, helping to answer fundamental questions about the Universe and our place in it.
Geophysical, Galactic, and Extra-Galactic Science with the AuScope and Australian Pathfinder Arrays. Two new radio telescope arrays are under construction in Australia. One is the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, near Geraldton. The other is a very long baseline array with antennae near Hobart, Katherine, and Yarragadee. These three antennae work together to observe radio sources far away across the universe. Their observations are used to establish a very accurate coordinate syste ....Geophysical, Galactic, and Extra-Galactic Science with the AuScope and Australian Pathfinder Arrays. Two new radio telescope arrays are under construction in Australia. One is the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder, near Geraldton. The other is a very long baseline array with antennae near Hobart, Katherine, and Yarragadee. These three antennae work together to observe radio sources far away across the universe. Their observations are used to establish a very accurate coordinate system or reference frame on the earth, to which the global positioning system is aligned. This program will use these new radio telescope arrays to study the Milky Way and other galaxies, and to study continental drift and sea-level rise on the Earth.Read moreRead less
Cosmic powerhouses: The birth, death, and legacy of black hole jets. This project targets relativistic jets powered by supermassive black holes - the most powerful systems in the Universe. Theoretically, the enormous energies released have a profound influence on how galaxies evolve; empirically, observations reveal signatures of their impact across cosmic time. However, fundamental questions remain about how these jets are triggered and what impact they have on galaxies. The project will addres ....Cosmic powerhouses: The birth, death, and legacy of black hole jets. This project targets relativistic jets powered by supermassive black holes - the most powerful systems in the Universe. Theoretically, the enormous energies released have a profound influence on how galaxies evolve; empirically, observations reveal signatures of their impact across cosmic time. However, fundamental questions remain about how these jets are triggered and what impact they have on galaxies. The project will address these questions using novel supercomputer models of black hole jets in realistic cosmological environments, then confront these predictions with new data from Square Kilometre Array (SKA) pathfinding radio telescopes. This will substantially enhance Australia’s leadership capacity in a strategically important area.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100105
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$570,000.00
Summary
Broadband receivers for AuScope geodetic and astronomical applications . Broadband receivers for AuScope geodetic and astronomical applications: This project aims to develop an innovative broadband receiver system which will be deployed on the AuScope array of radio telescopes. This will enable the telescopes to play a key role in improving precision navigation both in Australia and throughout the Southern Hemisphere. The new receiver systems will significantly improve the capability of these fa ....Broadband receivers for AuScope geodetic and astronomical applications . Broadband receivers for AuScope geodetic and astronomical applications: This project aims to develop an innovative broadband receiver system which will be deployed on the AuScope array of radio telescopes. This will enable the telescopes to play a key role in improving precision navigation both in Australia and throughout the Southern Hemisphere. The new receiver systems will significantly improve the capability of these facilities for both geodetic and astronomical investigations. Improvements to the accuracy of the terrestrial reference frame in Australia will allow more accurate measurements of changes in sea level, while high precision astrometric observations undertaken with the new receivers will be used to determine the structure of our Milky Way Galaxy.Read moreRead less