Hosts:
Fraser Cain (universetoday.com / @fcain)
Sondy Springmann (@sondy)
Beth Johnson (@planetarypan)
Michael Rodruck (@michaelrodruck)
This week we welcome Dr. Marina Kounkel, a postdoctoral scholar in the Physics and Astronomy Department at the Western Washington University. Her research focuses on observing the dynamics of young stars.
Marina is co-author, with Kevin Covey (also from WWU,) of the peer-reviewed study titled “Untangling the Galaxy I: Local Structure and Star Formation History of the Milky Way” published in “The Astronomical Journal” in August 2019. Using a machine-learning algorithm to analyze motion and position data obtained by Gaia for over a billion stars, almost 2000 new star clusters and co-moving groups of stars – Sibling Stars if you will – have been identified, all of which lie within ~3000 light years from us.
In addition, as part of this study, the ages for hundreds of thousands of additional stars have been determined thus allowing star families to be tracked which provides further insight into how these stars have migrated throughout our galaxy. According to Marina, “Around half of these stars are found in long, string-like configurations that mirror features present within their giant birth clouds.” By studying these strings, we may gain insight into how the Milky Way has evolved.
To learn more about Marina, visit her website http://mkounkel.com/
Want to know more about Marina’s study and how these strings can further our understanding of galaxy evolution? Visit https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Gaia/Gaia_untangles_the_starry_strings_of_the_Milky_Way
The study is also available for download here: https://arxiv.org/abs/1907.07709
Announcements:
The Weekly Space Hangout is a production of CosmoQuest.
Want to support CosmoQuest? Here are specific ways you can help:
If you would like to join the Weekly Space Hangout Crew, visit their site here and sign up. They’re a great team who can help you join our online discussions!
We record the Weekly Space Hangout every Wednesday at 5:00 pm Pacific / 8:00 pm Eastern. You can watch us live on Universe Today, or the Weekly Space Hangout YouTube page – Please subscribe!
Podcast (wshaudio): Download (Duration: 56:11 — 41.8MB)
A new technique for creating lighter and cheaper radiation shielding involves a secret ingredient: rust!
According to a new study by a pair of Harvard astrophysicists, it is possible that meteors traveling close to the…
This week's Carnival of Space is hosted by Allen Versfeld at his Urban Astronomer blog. Click here to read Carnival…
Happen to have clear skies tomorrow morning and live in the western part of the United States? Then you may…
Near the end of 2019, astronomers watching the red giant Betelgeuse noted how much the star had dimmed, continuing to…
Impact craters can be quite complex. Depending on the size of the impactor, and on the size of the planet…