Data Reduction from Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy Telescopes and Analysis with Multiple Surveys for Slow Rotating Stars for Gyrochronology

Ahnika Gee
Kylie Boyer, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Abstract

Gyrochronology, the method of estimating the ages of stars from their rotation rate, relies on precise measurements of minute changes in brightness. In addition, stars with long rotation periods require longer time coverage than is usually provided by single-mission space-based observations. To improve the detectability of rotation periods longer than tens of days, we supplemented data from space-based missions such as NASA’s Kepler, K2 and Transiting Exoplanetary Survey Satellite (TESS), ESA’s Global Astrometric Interferometer for Astrophysics (GAIA) with ground-based data from the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA) telescopes, enhancing accuracy. We used the 0.9 m telescope at the Kitt Peak National Observatory, the 1.0 m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos in the Canary Islands, and the 0.6 m telescope in Cerro Tololo to take data over several nights. AstroImageJ (AIJ) was employed to conduct multi-aperture photometry on the SARA data, to help fill gaps in time coverage provided by space-based missions. In this poster, we outline the reduction procedures applied to the SARA data and present some preliminary results of our efforts to combine ground- and space-based data.

 

Data Reduction from Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy Telescopes and Analysis with Multiple Surveys for Slow Rotating Stars for Gyrochronology

Gyrochronology, the method of estimating the ages of stars from their rotation rate, relies on precise measurements of minute changes in brightness. In addition, stars with long rotation periods require longer time coverage than is usually provided by single-mission space-based observations. To improve the detectability of rotation periods longer than tens of days, we supplemented data from space-based missions such as NASA’s Kepler, K2 and Transiting Exoplanetary Survey Satellite (TESS), ESA’s Global Astrometric Interferometer for Astrophysics (GAIA) with ground-based data from the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA) telescopes, enhancing accuracy. We used the 0.9 m telescope at the Kitt Peak National Observatory, the 1.0 m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope at the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos in the Canary Islands, and the 0.6 m telescope in Cerro Tololo to take data over several nights. AstroImageJ (AIJ) was employed to conduct multi-aperture photometry on the SARA data, to help fill gaps in time coverage provided by space-based missions. In this poster, we outline the reduction procedures applied to the SARA data and present some preliminary results of our efforts to combine ground- and space-based data.