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- Bianco, Federica B., et al.
(author)
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Optimization of the Observing Cadence for the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time : A Pioneering Process of Community-focused Experimental Design
- 2022
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In: Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0067-0049 .- 1538-4365. ; 258:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a ground-based astronomical facility under construction, a joint project of the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy, designed to conduct a multipurpose 10 yr optical survey of the Southern Hemisphere sky: the Legacy Survey of Space and Time. Significant flexibility in survey strategy remains within the constraints imposed by the core science goals of probing dark energy and dark matter, cataloging the solar system, exploring the transient optical sky, and mapping the Milky Way. The survey's massive data throughput will be transformational for many other astrophysics domains and Rubin's data access policy sets the stage for a huge community of potential users. To ensure that the survey science potential is maximized while serving as broad a community as possible, Rubin Observatory has involved the scientific community at large in the process of setting and refining the details of the observing strategy. The motivation, history, and decision-making process of this strategy optimization are detailed in this paper, giving context to the science-driven proposals and recommendations for the survey strategy included in this Focus Issue.
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- Shah, Shivani P., et al.
(author)
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Uranium Abundances and Ages of r-process Enhanced Stars with Novel U ii Lines*
- 2023
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 948:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The ages of the oldest stars shed light on the birth, chemical enrichment, and chemical evolution of the universe. Nucleocosmochronometry provides an avenue to determining the ages of these stars independent from stellar-evolution models. The uranium abundance, which can be determined for metal-poor r-process enhanced (RPE) stars, has been known to constitute one of the most robust chronometers known. So far, U abundance determination has used a single U ii line at λ3859 Å. Consequently, U abundance has been reliably determined for only five RPE stars. Here, we present the first homogeneous U abundance analysis of four RPE stars using two novel U ii lines at λ4050 Å and λ4090 Å, in addition to the canonical λ3859 Å line. We find that the U ii lines at λ4050 Å and λ4090 Å are reliable and render U abundances in agreement with the λ3859 U abundance, for all of the stars. We, thus, determine revised U abundances for RPE stars, 2MASS J09544277+5246414, RAVE J203843.2–002333, HE 1523–0901, and CS 31082–001, using multiple U ii lines. We also provide nucleocosmochronometric ages of these stars based on the newly derived U, Th, and Eu abundances. The results of this study open up a new avenue to reliably and homogeneously determine U abundance for a significantly larger number of RPE stars. This will, in turn, enable robust constraints on the nucleocosmochronometric ages of RPE stars, which can be applied to understand the chemical enrichment and evolution in the early universe, especially of r-process elements.
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