RECONS Explores the Nearest Stars

recon（近地恒星研究联盟，www.recons.org）项目正在测量距离太阳最近的几千颗恒星的基本特性，这些恒星距离太阳约80光年。在这个奖项下，该团队将专注于最小的恒星，即红矮星，以及它们的质量稍小的表亲，即褐矮星。虽然它们是宇宙中最小的恒星，但红矮星占所有恒星的四分之三以上；因此，了解它们在温度、大小以及它们是否被其他恒星或行星环绕方面与太阳的比较是很重要的。学生和博士后研究人员将发展数学和编程技能。佐治亚州立大学的学生来自历史上在科学事业中代表性不足的群体，这个项目将为学生参与研究提供机会。recon项目的基石是智利塞罗·托洛洛美洲天文台的天体测量/光度测量项目，该项目自1999年以来一直在进行。在那里进行的观测精确地指出了500个目标样本中引人注目的恒星，这些样本通过其他望远镜（如SOAR、Gemini和HST）进行了更详细的观测，以表征恒星及其伴星的性质。该项目将探索恒星天体物理学中的两个关键问题：(1)当质量从最小的恒星下降到次恒星褐矮星时，物体的数量会发生什么变化？(2)在太阳系尺度上，围绕红矮星的伴星群——恒星、褐矮星和大质量行星——是多少？

The RECONS (REsearch Consortium On Nearby Stars, www.recons.org) project is measuring the basic properties of several thousand stars that are nearest to the Sun, out to about 80 light years. Under this award, the team will concentrate on the smallest stars, known as red dwarfs, and their slightly less massive cousins, known as brown dwarfs. Although they are the smallest stars in the Universe, red dwarfs account for more than three-quarters of all stars; so, it is important to understand how they compare to the Sun in temperature, size, and whether or not they are orbited by other stars or planets. Students and postdoctoral researchers will develop mathematical and programming skills. Georgia State University serves a large population of students from groups historically underrepresented in scientific careers, and this project will provide opportunities for student involvement in research.The cornerstone of the RECONS effort is the astrometry/photometry program at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile underway since 1999. Observations made there pinpoint compelling stars among a target sample of 500 that are observed in greater detail via observations from other telescopes such as SOAR, Gemini, and HST to characterize the natures of the stars and their companions. The project will explore two key questions in stellar astrophysics: (1) What happens to the population of objects as masses decline from the smallest stars to substellar brown dwarfs? (2) What is the companion population - stars, brown dwarfs, and massive planets - on Solar System scales around red dwarfs?