Overview
We invite applications from outstanding and highly motivated students for the Warwick Prize Scholarships in Astrophysics. The successful applicant will work with Dr Paul Strøm within the Astronomy and Astrophysics group in the Department of Physics at the University of Warwick.
This project will explore ways of efficiently detecting and characterising unusual transit signatures by simulating and analysing the type of data we expect to obtain from the upcoming European Space Agency space mission: PLATO.
In and amongst the starts which regularly dim every time an exoplanet transits, astronomers sometimes come across irregular dimming events caused by material passing in front of the host star. The irregular dimming events, which can last for days and months and which sometimes block out a significant fraction of the star light are referred to as "dipper stars". Although it is clear that the dimming events are caused by some transiting material, the details surrounding the what is causing the dimming remain uncertain. There are many possible mechanisms which may be causing the dimming events. Most of them suggest it is related to the circumstellar environment (e.g. warped inner disk) or transiting circumstellar material. There has also been suggestions that the dimming events are being caused by ringed planets as well as exocomets
The details of the PhD will depend on the interests and the skill set of the successful candidate. It is envisioned that the PhD will be focussed on studying the characteristics of unusual transits and then to use this gained insight into how to best detect and characterise them. For instance, one possible avenue of research could be to develop an efficient method for detecting exocomets absorption signatures in photometric data. This could involve injecting exocometary transits with known parameters into simulated PLATO data and then develop methods to retrieve these detections. Once they have been detected they could be modelled to get information such as absorption depth and come size and then compared to what was injected.
Warwick is an internationally recognised centre of research excellence. Our group takes leading roles in many major ground and space-based projects, including the Gravitational-wave Optical Transient Observer (GOTO), Next Generation Transit Survey (NGTS), PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars (PLATO) telescope, Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), WHT Enhanced Area Velocity Explorer (WEAVE) spectrograph, 4-metre Multi-Object Spectrograph Telescope (4MOST), and Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI).
The Astronomy & Astrophysics group is part of the Physics Department at Warwick; both the department and the university hold Athena SWAN Silver awards, a national initiative to promote gender equality for all staff and students. The Physics Department is also a Juno Champion, which is an award from the Institute of Physics to recognise our efforts to address the under-representation of women in university physics and to encourage better practice for all. The Astronomy & Astrophysics group also hosts monthly equitea forums to break down barriers faced by all under-represented groups in science.
More details on PhD positions with the Astronomy and Astrophysics group at Warwick are available here.
Start Date: October 2023
Funding Duration: 3.5-4.0 years
Applications due by: 10 January 2023
Eligibility
You must have or expect a First or Upper second class MSci, MPhys or equivalent degree in Physics or a closely related discipline. Holders of BSc honours degrees are eligible but successful BSc applicants typically have substantial additional research experience. International equivalents are detailed here.
For students whose first language is not English, we normally require a score of 6.5 in IELTS or equivalent. If your previous degree was taught in an English-speaking country this requirement may be waived.
The award is available to home and international applicants.
How To Apply
You must apply through the University’s online application system and follow the instructions. Use course code P-F3P0. Make sure to state an interest in the Astronomy and Astrophysics group. Please state ‘Warwick Prize Scholarships’ as the funding option. We encourage applicants to express interest in more than one available PhD project.
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