DEEP Drilling into the Kuiper Belt: The DECam Ecliptic Exploration Project

这项工作将完成DECAM黄道探测项目(DEEP)。深地天体是对横跨海王星的天体(TNOS)进行的持续地面望远镜调查。观察太阳系外迄今发现的最微弱的天体，深部可能会发现6,000-10,000个TNO。到今天为止，对外太阳系的所有调查总共产生了大约2,000个TNO。深部将观测到许多最微弱的TNO，直径小到50公里。到目前为止，由于很难观察到这些微弱的跨国公司，它们在调查中的代表性一直偏低。调查还将在整个太阳系发现大约10万颗小行星。这一史无前例的TNO宝库将对太阳系演化及其起源产生新的见解。这项工作将完成一名研究生的博士学位，并将涉及一些本科生通过密歇根大学的REU项目。该团队还与密歇根大学的自然历史博物馆合作，在这项工作的基础上举办了一个展览。DECAM黄道探索项目(DEEP)在CTIO的4米布兰科望远镜上获得了46.5晚的奖励。科学行动于2019年开始，有8.5个晚上，并将在2020年和2021年继续。Deeper将获取近黄道场的4小时曝光序列，单次曝光深度为24.5毫克，联合叠加深度近27.0毫克。使用现有的移位和堆叠技术，深度号将发现数以千计的跨海王星天体(TNO)。早期深度数据中的概念验证分析在单个4小时深度暴露序列中产生了80个具有SNR15的TNO，这意味着即使没有对团队现有工具进行改进，SNR5-10的最终产量也将达到6,000-10,000个发现。该团队将测量TNO大小分布到约50公里，测量许多物体的颜色和自转速度作为其动力学类别的函数，并发现柯伊伯带以外的遥远物体。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This work will complete the DECam Ecliptic Exploration Project (DEEP). DEEP is an ongoing ground-based telescopic survey of Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs). Observing the faintest objects yet found in the outer solar system, DEEP will likely discover 6,000 – 10,000 TNOs. As of today, all surveys of the Outer Solar System have yielded approximately 2,000 TNOs combined. DEEP will observe many of the faintest TNOs down to diameters of ~50 km. Until now, these faint TNOs have been under-represented in surveys due to the difficulty in observing them. The survey will also discover approximately 100,000 asteroids throughout the Solar System. This unprecedented trove of TNOs will yield new insights into Solar System evolution and its origins. This work will complete a graduate student’s PhD and will involve a number of undergraduate students through the University of Michigan’s REU program. The team is also working with UM’s Natural History Museum on an exhibit based on this work.The DECam Ecliptic Exploration Project (DEEP) has been awarded 46.5 nights on the 4-meter Blanco Telescope at CTIO. Science operations began in 2019 with 8.5 nights, and will continue in 2020 and 2021. DEEP will acquire 4-hour exposure sequences of near-ecliptic fields, reaching a depth of 24.5 mag in single exposures and nearly 27.0 mag in co-added stacks. Using established shift-and-stack techniques, DEEP will discover thousands of trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs). A proof-of-concept analysis in early DEEP data yielded 80 TNOs with SNR15 in a single 4-hour DEEP exposure sequence, implying an eventual yield of 6,000-10,000 discoveries with SNR5-10 even without improvements to the team’s existing tools. The team will measure the TNO size distribution down to ~50 km, measure colors and rotation rates of many objects as a function of their dynamical class and discover distant objects beyond the Kuiper Belt.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.