REU Site: Wyoming Astronomy

该奖项将支持怀俄明州大学每年为8名本科生续签为期10周的研究经验计划。该计划的一个独特之处在于，学生们作为一个团队一起工作，在一个单一的研究项目中，每个学生都被分配到单独的子项目中。研究项目和教师领导每年轮换，（1）来自TESS的系外行星候选者的斑点成像，（2）类星体的Hb混响映射，以及（3）使用超高精度搜索类地行星附近恒星的径向速度测量被预定为接下来的三个夏天。学生们将通过他们独家访问UWyo的2.3米望远镜（70夜）来进行这项研究，以获得观测天体物理学的真正身临其境的体验，他们将接受额外的培训，为他们的研究生院和职业生涯做准备在STEM领域。他们还将有机会通过AstroCamp参加科学推广活动，AstroCamp是一个为期10天的科学夏令营，在夏季为6 - 8年级的学生提供服务。本项目由OMA和EPSCoR共同资助，招募对象为文科院校、两年制大学和公共机构的大一和大二学生，这些院校的研究机会很少。该项目将继续与Cal-Bridge暑期项目合作，以招募少数民族学生为目标。过去的成功使这些少数民族的参与率在过去六年中提高到22%以上。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

This award will support the renewal of a 10-week research experience program for eight undergraduate students per year at the University of Wyoming. A unique aspect of this program is that students work together as a team on a single research project with each student assigned separate sub-projects within the whole. The research projects and faculty leads rotate each year, with (1) speckle imaging of exoplanet candidates from TESS, (2) Hb reverberation mapping of quasars, and (3) searches for Earth-like planets using ultra-high precision radial velocity measurements of nearby stars being slated for the following three summers. The students will carry out this research through their exclusive access to UWyo’s 2.3 m telescope (70-nights) to gain a truly immersive experience in observational astrophysics, and they will receive additional training to prepare them for graduate school and careers in STEM fields. They will also be given the opportunity to participate in science outreach through AstroCamp, a 10-day science camp for rising 6th-8th graders during the summer. This project is jointly funded by OMA and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).Recruitment of participants will focus on freshmen and sophomore students from liberal arts colleges, two-year colleges, and public institutions offering little to no research opportunities. The project will continue to collaborate with the Cal-Bridge Summer program to target minority students for recruitment. Past success has increased the participation of these minorities to over 22% in the past six years. The recruitment techniques that have achieved this balance will be continued in the current project.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.