Dwarf Planets of the Southern Hemisphere

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Dr. Megan Schwamb is awarded an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship to carry out a program of research and education at Yale University. In collaboration with a three-year survey of the southern hemisphere led by Yale, Dr. Schwamb will search the southern skies for the largest and brightest members of the Kuiper belt and study the orbital and physical characteristics of these new discoveries and what they reveal about the dynamical history and environment of the early solar system. Dr. Schwamb will use spectroscopic observations to examine the surface volatile inventory and the processes shaping the surfaces and atmospheres of the newly discovered dwarf planets; search for satellites to probe the internal structure, composition, and mass of these large Kuiper belt objects and investigate the collisional history of the Kuiper belt; and examine the orbital properties of all new discoveries including looking for Sedna-like and other unusual orbits.Dr. Schwamb will also conduct a two-fold outreach program that focuses on students interested in pursing a career in science and the broader public. For the duration of the fellowship, Dr. Schwamb will supervise a summer undergraduate student each year on projects related to the Yale survey, mentor young women interested in pursuing a career in science, and develop workshops at the Leitner Family Observatory geared towards schoolchildren on topics related to the solar system. To reach the broader public, Dr. Schwamb will create a website and blog to chronicle the progress of the Yale survey and detail new, exciting information learned about the dwarf planets discovered.