NSF Award
2310000
Astrophysical gamma-rays are the highest energy form of electromagnetic radiation, and their observations provide the ability to study physical conditions and processes in the most extreme environments throughout the Universe. The Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope System (VERITAS), located at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory in southern Arizona, is designed to provide leading ground-based observations of very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-rays. This award supports scientists at the California Polytechnic State University to carry out research with VERITAS and the co-located Cherekov Telescope Array prototype Schwartzchild-Couder Telescope (pSCT). The group will conduct analyses of VERITAS data to improve the understanding of VHE gamma-rays produced in active galaxies, which are favored sources of multiple astronomical messengers. The supported team of undergraduate researchers will develop and apply extensions of the VERITAS detection algorithms to conduct target-of-opportunity observations, including those associated with high-energy astrophysical neutrino alerts and contemporaneous observations of active galactic nuclei (AGN) with the Event Horizon Telescope. In addition, the group will partner with the Center for Engineering, Science and Mathematics Education to connect with high school teachers in the state via a dedicated curriculum that builds scientific abilities through investigations of spectra and active galaxy morphology. <br/><br/>VERITAS and the pSCT utilize imaging Cherenkov telescopes to provide high-sensitivity pointed VHE (100 GeV – 30 TeV) gamma-ray observations of galactic and extragalactic sources. AGNs harbor a super-massive black hole at their core surrounded by an accretion disk and are of particular interest in VHE gamma-ray studies. Little is yet known about the interaction between the accretion disk and the black hole, which can produce some of the Universe's most powerful beamed jets of highly energetic particles and radiation. Combining the measurements of VHE gamma-rays with multi-messenger observations of neutrinos and cosmic rays makes it possible to extend AGN science to constrain current models of acceleration processes. This project advances the goals of the NSF Windows on the Universe Big Idea.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
