Confirming Asteroid TrendsWorking with the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF)

Chan-Kao “Rex” ChangDr. Wing-Huen IpNicholas Powers and Anthony Smith

Palomar Transient Factory (PTF)

Project at CalTech in California

Centered around one main telescope 48 arc-second 12 CCD chips – one is out of order

F.o.V is ~7 deg2 Resolution of 1 arc-second/pixel

The Images

The Goal

The Process Download the data

Program to download data Outputs catalogs and images Only working with catalogs

Differentiate objects as either static or moving

Objects that do not move over the course of multiple catalogs are static

Example of moving source

Example of moving source

Example of moving source

The Process continued Compare moving point sources to ephemerids

Position of objects at the time of recording vs. approximate position of objects in the database

Right Ascension and Declination (long and lat) Analyze light curves to determine rotation periods

Plot Diameter vs. Period of rotation (or freq) Diameter can be determined based on traits such as albedo – magnitude of solar reflection

Progress Read PTF data

Julian Dates Right Ascension Declination Magnitude

Sort Objects Moving Stationary

R.A.

Dec

R.A.

Dec

Progress Read MPC data

Organize Compare MPC with PTF Output files for each known object Plotted Light Curves Analyzed Period Data Determined Approximate Diameter

Masiero et. al. 2009 Graph Period vs. Diameter

Questions?HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY

Acknowledgements Office of International Programs, SUNY Oswego

Dr. Shashi M. Kanbur Dr. Wing-Huen Ip and Chan-Kao “Rex” Chang

National Central University Graduate institute of Astronomy, Jhongli, Taiwan

National Science Foundation's Office of International Science and Engineering award number 1065093

Office of International Programs, NCU

Picture Sources “A search for main-belt comets in the Palomar Transient Factory survey: I”. Extended-object analysis - Waszczak et al. 2013 (submitted to MNRAS)

“The Asteroid Lightcurve Database” Warner et al. 2009. Icarus, Volume 202, Issue 1, p. 134-146

“P48 Observers Information” California Institute of Technology. http://www.astro.caltech.edu/palomar/P48observers.html