[ASA] PhD projects at Curtin's Space Science and Technology Centre

[Ellie Sansom]

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Consider applying for a PhD position at the School of Earth and Planetary Science at Curtin University, and join a diverse team of earth and planetary scientists in the Space Science and Technology Centre that is looking to expand with new PhDs.
We have multiple projects in the field of planetary science, for students with backgrounds in astronomy, data science, geology, engineering, computer science, physics, maths. Dedicated projects using the large scale observational facilities are outlined below, with others available on the SSTC website.

For all projects we would like to receive expressions of interest by the end of June in order to conduct interviews prior to RTP scholarship deadlines. If you would like to work with us, and your ideal project is not described below, please still get in touch.

Merit based RTP scholarships<https://www.education.gov.au/research-training-program> are available for Australian students.

More about the host institution: https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/I_VzCNLJyQUnJrvEirHoPs?domain=sstc.curtin.edu.au

Expression of interest deadline: June 30, 2020

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SSTC has pioneered the development of large networked facilities using hardened autonomous observatories. The Desert Fireball Network (DFN) has 50 autonomous stations across Australia. It has been observing ~2.5 million km2 of Australian skies since 2015. It provides a spatial context for meteorites – we can track a rock back to where it originated in the solar system, and forward to where it lands, for recovery by a field party. The database of >1400 meteoroid orbits is larger than the combined literature dataset for >70 years of observation, providing a unique window into the distribution of debris in the inner solar system. With 14 international partners, and facilitated by NASA, the project has recently expanded to a global facility. The Global Fireball Observatory (GFO) will cover x5 the observing area of the DFN, able to track debris entering our atmosphere 24 hours a day. These networks informed the development of a satellite tracking network – FireOPAL – with Lockheed Martin. Although designed for satellite observations, FireOPAL also happens to be a world-class astronomical transient observatory. The DFN, GFO, and FireOPAL are helping us answer fundamental questions in planetary science and astronomy. If you would like to be part of this team, and work with colleagues in universities around the world, at NASA, and in industry, read on.
Large scale searches for astronomical transients

Whether looking for meteorite or tracking satellites, the Desert Fireball Network continuously scans large areas of the night sky, compiling a unique archive of the entire visible sky at an unmatched cadence.

At any point the DFN is probing 20,000° of sky down to vmag=8 (30 second cadence), and 2,500° down to vmag= 15 (10 second cadence). This opens up a new area in time-domain astronomy, and allows detection of the fastest optical transient phenomena.

This PhD project will focus on the development of a data pipeline that will open up these facilities for astronomical research, and then an exploration of those new research possibilities. In building the software that will identify non-local astronomical anomalies (supernovae, flaring stars, gravitational waves counterparts, exoplanets) the student will: have access to all of the DFN output; the ability to test computational approaches on a lab-based system and upload new iterations of software remotely to deployed observatories; and the full 6-year dataset from the entire network (~2000TB) stored at the Pawsey Supercomputing Centre.

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Background preferred:
Data science, astronomy

Main supervisor:
Dr. Hadrien Devillepoix<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/31zYCQnMBZfDgEz3iQlDOo?domain=staffportal.curtin.edu.au>
Strengths of meteoroids in the upper atmosphere

Recent space missions to asteroids have gathered detailed information not just on the composition of these bodies, but also on their material properties – e.g. their strength, and whether they are a rubble pile or a single monolithic rock. But we know very little about the strength of small objects in the metre to 10s meter class. This project will look at the breakup of meteoroids in our atmosphere to calculate the bulk strengths of these objects. It will also look at the origins of this material to determine if there is a correlation between strengths and any specific orbits or regions of the Solar System, or specific asteroids and their families. The results will inform our understanding of the asteroid hazard (do small objects all generate airburst ‘Tunguska-like’ explosions), the lifetime of debris in the inner Solar System, and how we date the ages of planetary surfaces.

This specific project may be more suited to a background in astronomy or physics, though we will consider applications from other backgrounds if suitable.

[https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/NfqQCROND2uKok7RsX3TNo?domain=mcusercontent.com]
Background preferred:
Astronomy, physics

Main supervisor:
Dr. Eleanor Sansom<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/udSsCVARKgC4mLO5fMIHDT?domain=staffportal.curtin.edu.au>
The rate of impacts on Earth

How much material is bombarding the Earth on a daily basis? The dataset is well constrained for large (>10s m sized) objects, as well as the small, dusty material, but the cm-m size range is poorly known. The DFN dataset contains the largest and most complete record of the flux, size distribution, and orbits of material intersecting out planet. This project will use the DFN’s orbital database to answer the fundamental question: how often do we get impacted? This will place a critical constrain on the impact hazard (there is an order-of-magnitude variation in estimates of Tunguska-class impactors). These data can also be used to model the flux of material into the inner solar system in general. How much material might be expected on the Moon, or even Mars?

This specific project may be more suited to a background in astronomy, physics or statistics, though we will consider applications from other backgrounds if suitable.

[https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/G1M8CWLVXkUpZglPtrLZXl?domain=mcusercontent.com]
Background preferred:
Astronomy, physics, statistics

Main supervisor:
Dr. Eleanor Sansom<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/udSsCVARKgC4mLO5fMIHDT?domain=staffportal.curtin.edu.au>
Debris streams in the inner Solar System

Meteor showers are typically associated with smaller, cometary material. Despite the DFN being tuned to brighter fireball events, we do observed events with meteor showers arising from known cometary parent bodies. Asteroid Bennu was recently visited by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx, where material was seen being spun off the surface. This project will investigate if there are any objects in the DFN data that could have originated from such a body and assess the likelihood of asteroid streams. For showers known for having larger material, is this an indication of different production mechanisms possibly associated with asteroid break up or spin-off debris rather than from a comet?

This specific project may be more suited to a background in physics, astronomy or statistics, though we will consider applications from other backgrounds if suitable.

[https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/RdvxCXLW2mU6jypqUEQlEp?domain=mcusercontent.com]
Background preferred:
Data science, astronomy

Main supervisor:
Dr. Hadrien Devillepoix<https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/31zYCQnMBZfDgEz3iQlDOo?domain=staffportal.curtin.edu.au/>
PhDs. Starting 2021
Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarships will be available to apply for 1st July, with projects starting end 2020/early 2021. We want to start the conversation with you today. Email the primary supervisor listed to start an incredible science journey.
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