REU Site: Solar Physics at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

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This is an ongoing Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Program at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA), in which students will carry out individual research projects in solar physics under the supervision of CfA senior staff scientists for ten weeks during the summer. The student projects mostly involve data analysis from space missions currently being supported at the CfA, such as Hinode, SDO, IRIS and Wind, or numerical modeling projects, depending on the students' interests and abilities. The target group of students consists of undergraduates in STEM disciplines, with a preference for students from small colleges where there are few research opportunities. Through ongoing CfA international collaborations, the principal investigator (PI)'s team will invite a small number of international students to participate in the program. The PI plans to encourage minority student applications by making professional contacts at conferences that serve minority populations, as well as through contacting minority colleges and universities. The PI expects that student projects will frequently result in joint professional publications or presentations with their CfA mentor(s), providing undergraduates with valuable motivation and career development experiences. Since Solar Physics is taught at relatively few colleges and universities, this program provides an important service to the discipline. With its strong Space Weather component it has the double benefit to society of adding to our understanding of potential space hazards. Moreover, former participants of this program have reported that the exposure to professional research in a university environment helps them to decide whether to continue their education in graduate school, and whether or not to pursue research as a profession.