
NSF Org: |
AST Division Of Astronomical Sciences |
Recipient: |
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Initial Amendment Date: | February 8, 2019 |
Latest Amendment Date: | February 8, 2019 |
Award Number: | 1852478 |
Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
Program Manager: |
James Higdon
AST Division Of Astronomical Sciences MPS Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences |
Start Date: | March 1, 2019 |
End Date: | February 28, 2022 (Estimated) |
Total Intended Award Amount: | $130,846.00 |
Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $130,846.00 |
Funds Obligated to Date: |
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History of Investigator: |
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Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
601 S KNOLES DR RM 220 FLAGSTAFF AZ US 86011 (928)523-0886 |
Sponsor Congressional District: |
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Primary Place of Performance: |
AZ US 86011-0001 |
Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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Parent UEI: |
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NSF Program(s): | SPECIAL PROGRAMS IN ASTRONOMY |
Primary Program Source: |
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Program Reference Code(s): |
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Program Element Code(s): |
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Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.049 |
ABSTRACT
This award provides renewed funding for one year for the longstanding Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site at Northern Arizona University (NAU) and Lowell Observatory. Ten student participants per year will be paired with NAU and Lowell scientists to conduct astrophysics research into a wide variety of topics, including lunar impact craters, cryogenic outer solar system ices, near-earth objects, and exoplanets. In addition, the students will attend biweekly seminars to learn more about professional astrophysics, responsible research conduct, and applying to graduate school. The Site will also introduce students to cutting-edge telescopes, including Lowell's Discovery Channel Telescope and the Naval Precision Optical Interferometer.
By offering high-quality research experiences to students at a critical stage of undergraduate education, the REU Site will contribute to increasing the nationwide pool of scientists and engineers. Participants will develop the research methods and analytical skills (mathematical, computational, and logical) necessary to process data, understand primary research, and to remain current with new developments in the field. The REU Site also has an active and highly developed plan to recruit underrepresented minorities into its program, which will expand STEM training opportunities to these groups.
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.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The primary goal of this project is to provide frontline research experiences for undergraduate students in a range of topics in astronomy and planetary science. Our program emphasizes recruiting students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds, using a variety of strategies. Students are paired with a mentor or mentor team, and topics range from earth and planetary geology, remote sensing, and instrumentation to stellar and extragalactic observational astronomy, computer science, and laboratory astrophysics. This project partially or completely supported 28 undergraduate students over three years, of whom nearly 70% were women or minorities or both.
The intellectual merit of this project lies in the scientific results produced by students in this program. To date there are 2 published, refereed papers and 17 conference abstracts that REU students were the lead- or co-author on, and several more papers that have been submitted or are in preparation. These papers are on a range of topcis and published/presented in the leading journals and/or professional conferences.
The broader impact of this program is that we are training the next generation of STEM professionals. In our program students learn research skills but also participate in a range of professional development programs. These programs will help our students succeed and also prepare them to be leaders in STEM (academia, industry, national lab, etc.). Our program emphasizes recruiting and training students from traditiionally underrepresented backgrounds, which means that we are helping to create a more diverse STEM workforce in the years to come.
Last Modified: 07/03/2022
Modified by: David E Trilling
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