Faculty–Student Seminar
Oliver PHS 2079
Practical applications of Statistical Signal Processing
Identifying Periodic Events in the Search for Planets around stars
Statistics and signal processing theory have been an integral part of astronomical research for decades, but recent searches for planets are stars (extra-solar planets or exoplanets) are taking this to a new level. One technique of searching for exoplanets involves observing a starfield continuously, taking digital snapshots at regular intervals in an attempt to capture an exoplanet passing between us and the star it orbits around, causing the star to appear to dim for a few hours as some of its light is blocked. The mathematical process of extracting these rare events out of hundreds of images of thousands of stars, however, is a delicate process combining the theories of statistical signal processing and the adjustments and compromises dictated by the non-idealities of real data.