CHIRON Planet Search

Dr. Fischer will use the CHIRON spectrometer on the CTIO 1.5-m telescope to search for exoplanets via the radial velocity technique. She will target 30 bright late-type (G and K dwarf) stars with the goal of achieving 1 m/s measurement precision with new instrumentation after first testing it in a laboratory environment. The PI and her team will also develop a Doppler simulator to help determine the best possible observational precision.

This work will train postdoctoral research associates, graduate and undergraduate students in research and instrumentation. The team will also work on the ?jitter? observational problem, which results from vertical atmospheric motions on small spatial scales, and if solved, would have wide applicability to other fields of astronomy. They will also conduct a hands-on ?Pathways to Science? program for school children, and help the Yale planetarium director develop a new show on exoplanets.