Bulletin of the American Physical Society
2006 73rd Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Section of the APS
Thursday–Saturday, November 9–11, 2006; Williamsburg, Virginia
Session NA: Astronomy and Astrophysics |
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Chair: Jonathan Keohane, Hampden-Sydney College Room: Williamsburg Hospitality House Empire A/B |
Saturday, November 11, 2006 10:45AM - 11:15AM |
NA.00001: The Extrasolar Planet Zoo Invited Speaker: In this talk, I will review the current state of extrasolar planets. Because this field of so large and time is limited, I will focus on the demographics of the current members, methods of detection, and what kinds of missions and investigations are being planned for the near future. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 11, 2006 11:15AM - 11:45AM |
NA.00002: From EGRET to GLAST: The Past and Future of Gamma-Ray Blazars Invited Speaker: I will begin by discussing the blazar phenomenon and putting this in context of the most recent high energy gamma-ray observations of blazars, particularly those of the Energetic Gamma-Ray Telescope Experiment (EGRET). These results will include my own most recent statistical analysis and simulations. Finally, I will discuss implications for observations with the Gamma-Ray Large Area Telescope (GLAST), due for launch in 2007. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 11, 2006 11:45AM - 12:15PM |
NA.00003: The Early Successes of PROMPT: Rapid Observations of the Optical Afterglows of GRBs Invited Speaker: Although construction began on PROMPT (Panchromatic Robotic Optical Monitoring and Polarimetry Telescopes) in only December of 2004, it has already produced exciting new data detailing both the temporal and spectral properties of GRB afterglows at early times. Since the beginning of full queue-based observing mode in mid-2005, PROMPT has responded seven times to real-time GRB triggers, producing multicolor lightcurves of the afterglows of four of these beginning only tens of seconds after the burst. PROMPT consists of six robotic 16" telescopes, located at CTIO, which were designed to capture the early optical afterglows of GRBs. Each telescope is optimized for a different pass-band, ranging from the UV through the optical and into the near-infrared. A sixth telescope will consist of an optical polarimeter, whose lightcurves will complement the remaining five telescopes and put important constraints on the physics of the early afterglow. Both the NIR camera and polarimeter are currently being commissioned at UNC and will be installed in late Fall of 2006. [Preview Abstract] |
Saturday, November 11, 2006 12:15PM - 12:45PM |
NA.00004: Using Ultrahigh Energy Cosmic Rays to Probe New Physics Invited Speaker: Due to the uncertainty principle, higher and higher particle energies are required to probe smaller and smaller physical scales. In the near future, earth-based particle accelerators may be able to achieve the TeV scale but to go beyond this, one must use the cosmic accelerators that nature has provided such as ultrahigh energy cosmic rays. The flux of these particles is expected to be dramatically attenuated by photomeson producing interactions with the cosmic microwave background as first pointed out by Greisen, Zatsepin and Kuz’min in the 1960s (the GZK effect). Yet some particles have been observed at energies above the GZK cutoff, and in particular by the Akeno array, which is in possible contradiction to the attenuation effect. We may indeed be seeing new physics beyond the standard model such as quantum gravity, extra dimensions, or string theory coming into play. For some of these effects, the modified particle energy spectrum can be calculated which leads to a lessening of the GZK effect. Such theoretical studies combined with new experimental data that will soon be available from the Auger array may lead to a revolution in our understanding of fundamental physics. [Preview Abstract] |
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