Penn State Eberly College of Science’s Post

Oops, I did it again! My latest work has just been published in Astronomy & Astrophysics. 🍾 In this study, we utilised the most detailed simulations of planetary collisions and integrated ML models to develop a state-of-the-art analytical model that accelerates and widely improves our simulations of terrestrial planet formation. Among the many questions we aim to answer are: How did the Earth form? Why do we have water on Earth and not just a planet-sized sandcastle? Why is it the way it is, allowing us to be here and publish papers about why it is the way it is? Because, let’s face it, the universe is pretty wild and we just love trying to make sense of it all! 😂

Astronomy can be described as the study of the universe beyond the Earth's atmosphere, while Astrophysics can be defined as a branch of Astronomy which concentrates on the physical processes associated with the entities that is comprising with the universe.

Solar eclipses have been changing for millions of years and they will continue to change millions of years later. Distinguished Senior Scholar and Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics Eric Feigelson discusses this phenomenon in our latest video. Learn more about solar eclipses (including the one on April 8) at https://buff.ly/3ux7vqn

One of our faculty members in the department of astronomy and astrophysics, Jason Wright, was featured on the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications "Centre County Report", where he talked about the solar eclipse on April 8. Check out this clip of Jason sharing a fun tip on how you can see some interesting shadows during the partial stage of the eclipse! You can watch the full interview at https://buff.ly/49k1sE3

When will the next total solar eclipse be observable in Pennsylvania (after April 8)? Robert Morehead, associate teaching professor of astronomy and astrophysics, shares when the next one will occur in our neck of the woods. Here’s a hint: You might want to check out the one on April 8. Learn more about how you can observe it at https://buff.ly/3ux7vqn

Very interesting results on the structure of the Enceladus plume, with implications for future flyby missions targeting sampling of ice grains!

Your dose of astronomy and astrophysics.

The Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology recently celebrated its 20th anniversary! After two decades of generating insights into dark matter, black holes, galaxy formation, and the 14-billion-year-long history of the universe, KIPAC scientists are now looking forward to new telescopes, new synergies, and new ways to look at a whole lot of new data. https://ow.ly/Znlq50QE4f5

📃Scientific paper: Multi-messenger astrophysics in the gravitational-wave era Abstract: The observation of GW170817, the first binary neutron star merger observed in both gravitational waves (GW) and electromagnetic (EM) waves, kickstarted the age of multi-messenger GW astronomy. This new technique presents an observationally rich way to probe extreme astrophysical processes. With the onset of the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration's O4 observing run and wide-field EM instruments well-suited for transient searches, multi-messenger astrophysics has never been so promising. We review recent searches and results for multi-messenger counterparts to GW events, and describe existing and upcoming EM follow-up facilities, with a particular focus on WINTER, a new near-infrared survey telescope, and TESS, an exoplanet survey space telescope. ;Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, proceedings from TAUP 2023 Continued on ES/IODE ➡️ https://etcse.fr/SpcJ ------- If you find this interesting, feel free to follow, comment and share. We need your help to enhance our visibility, so that our platform continues to serve you.

As we approach the upcoming solar eclipse on April 8, you may be wondering if there is current scientific value in studying eclipses today. Professor and Department Head of Astronomy and Astrophysics Randy McEntaffer addresses this question and the importance of studying eclipses today. For more information about the upcoming solar eclipse, visit https://buff.ly/3ux7vqn