Ohio Wesleyan University astronomy professor Robert Harmon and 2008 OWU graduate Rachael Roettenbacher, assistant research scientist at the University of Michigan, have earned a $600,000 NASA grant to conduct what Harmon calls “the largest-scale study of starspots performed to date in terms of the number of stars involved.” Drs. Harmon and Roettenbacher will be using data from the Kepler space telescope to analyze starspot distribution. “Studies of starspots provide important insights into the physics of stellar magnetic fields and how they are generated,” said Harmon, Ph.D., a member of the Ohio Wesleyan faculty since 1999. “This, in turn, provides insight into magnetic processes on the Sun, which are important to understand because the Sun’s magnetic field is the driver of solar storms and coronal mass ejections that can have profound consequences for electrical grids, satellites, and more.”
Harmon will use a portion of the three-year NASA grant to hire OWU students each summer from 2025 through 2027. They will assist Harmon and Roettenbacher in their starspot studies through Ohio Wesleyan’s annual 10-week Summer Science Research Program. “Rachael and I studied starspots on a star named LO Pegasi when she completed an OWU Summer Science Research Program project with me back in 2006,” Harmon said. “She and I have been collaborating on starspot research and publishing papers together ever since, and this is our biggest project yet. It’s a pleasure to have your former student become your colleague, your collaborator, and your friend.” Learn more about Harmon and Ohio Wesleyan’s Department of Physics and Astronomy at www.owu.edu/physics and more about the university’s annual Summer Science Research Program at www.owu.edu/ssrp.
OWU Sponsoring Organization/Office: Foundation Relations Office
Contact: Susan Zimmerman at grants@owu.edu