Josh Liberman – Extreme Wavefront Control Lab

Coming Soon to a Workshop NYRIA

See what I did there? Heh, heh, heh. I hereby present to you a recap of the 2024 NYRIA workshop at UC San Diego–Josh style.

Day 0: Arrival

I arrived in San Diego with multiple hours to kill before my hotel check-in time. After acquiring recommendations from family members, I made my way over to the “Gaslight Quarter” (as it turns out, this is actually the Gaslamp District). I then walked into Petco Park–home of the San Diego Padres baseball team.

Modern Baseball — Despite its name, Petco Park contained no pets.

I was a bit surprised that the stadium gates were left open to the public, but I suppose the Padres team is used to letting people walk all over them.

After reaching the hotel, my roommate Gustavo and I ran to a nearby Starbucks for some last minute presentation edits/homework assignment submissions.

Starbucks coffee has nothing on the Philz Iced Mint Mojito — This late night work session was sponsored by Starbucks.

Day 1: Intros + Tours + Beach Day

On my walk to the workshop, I briefly considered dropping everything to join Saturnia, Emperor of Moths, in their rock band but I thought better of it.

I may need to become a mutant creature if I want to join this band :( — A band of moths.

Maybe next time.

In the opening session, we were treated to a great presentation from Professor Quinn Konopacky on the history of UCSD. Quinn also provided us with a brief update on the status of the Gemini Planet Imager.

Unfortunately, the GPI wavefront sensor is in Indiana at the moment.

We then introduced ourselves via some stylish slides.

Jonas wins for best use of photoshop while Weerapot wins for best use of the International Space Station as a green screen.

We next went on lab tours, seeing many a detector and dilution fridge.

Detecting a detector with my detector (say this 3 times fast).

Don't dilute us, Brutus. — This fridge cools things down to millikelvin temperatures.

An old planetarium. Perhaps we can get one for the office?

Following the lab tours, it was time to kayak. Along the way, Olivier’s RTC software made an appearance.

I have no pictures from kayaking but perhaps that is for the best. Aditya and I managed to crash into every kayak on the high seas at least once. However, we did see some seals, sea lions, and orange fish (garibaldi) so the excursion was very much worth it.

We concluded the day with pizza and smores on the beach (photos courtesy of Weerapot). Unfortunately, no green flash was spotted this time around.

Beaches are best enjoyed with pizzas, smores, and sunsets.

Day 2: Time to Get Down to Business

Day 2 began with a series of talks on instrumentation.

Did you know that exoplanet detection techniques outside of direct imaging exist? — Christian giving a talk on EPRV.

During the lunchbreak, Professor Adam Burgasser led a DEI workshop on adopting a growth mindset. One of the prompts was ‘Your instrument was awarded $30 million…’

Here at MagAO-X, we are always employing a growth mindset.

The afternoon session featured more exciting talks. My roommate, Dr. Gustavo Ramos, fresh off of a PhD thesis defense, gave a great talk on his star recognition algorithm.

I recognize at least one star in this image.

Some additional highlights from the talk session:

Upon returning to my hotel, I was greeted by an ominous warning on the microwave.

This signage could have prevented many fire alarms in undergraduate dorms.

Day 3: Talks + Tacos

The morning session was filled with additional instrumentation presentations. Here are a few more highlights:

Chanisa developed a spectrograph for atmospheric + astronomical applications in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Peyton is characterizing detectors for the Keck SCALES instrument.

Mariam works on an RV spectrograph located in the Canary Islands.

Haffert et al. (2019) count: 2

A fan favorite amongst professors whose names start with “Laird” and end with “Close.”

We were treated to a great career panel during our lunch break, featuring Professor Steph Sallum (she’s a Steward alum!) from UC Irvine, Professor Shelley Wright from UCSD, and Dr. Marie Ygouf from NASA JPL.

We then gathered outside for a group photo followed by tacos.

The sun was in my eyes, so I could not see anything.

Clarissa takes a selfie for the late arrivals table.

Day 4: Field Trip

Thursday featured a field trip to the Palomar Observatory, sponsored by Oreos and Jersey Mike’s.

I’m growing tired of typing, so here are the sparknotes:

The Palomar telescope dome (this telescope is an old soul).

Day 5: More Talks, More Tacos + Closing + Green Things

Day 5 is dedicated to the color green. Thus, I present some green things:

1.) Philz Coffee

The mint leaves from my Philz Iced Mint Mojito.

2.) Our hackathon final project presentations (the prompt was to build a green telescope).

Edoardo presents the S.A.L.A.D. telescope. What is greener than salad? Nothing.

3.) Dr. Saavi Perera’s closing remarks (not green, but we’ll let it slide)

4.) The green scarecrow hats from Tacos El Gordo

A final acknowledgement goes to Danny for his great stand-up comedy throughout the workshop (not pictured because I was too busy laughing of course).

The 2024 NYRIA workshop was a great success. Perhaps we can hold a future workshop in Tucson?

Song of the Day (Week):

Te Ves Buena-El General

Sagan Summer Workshop 2024: A Menagerie of Planets, People, and Projects

At risk of not being able to show my face in Eden’s upcoming quals study session, I hereby present to you the Sagan Summer Workshop 2024–a journey through space and time .

But first, here’s a clip of the Journey cover band that blessed my ears on my first night in California.

Journey(?) coming to you live from Burbank, California.

Day 0: PROTO Workshop

We began our week with a professional development workshop where we learned about large-scale mission planning. We also learned to appreciate the full breadth of NASA’s acronyms.

It's 2024 and NASA's got fish doing adaptive optics. — So many missions…so little time.

Day 1: HCIPy Day

It wouldn’t be a direct imaging conference without HCIPy! Sebastiaan masterfully guided the workshop attendees through a tutorial of everyone’s favorite high contrast imaging simulation framework.

Unfortunately, some of us skipped the workshop, thinking that they already knew HCIPy. These individuals in question came to regret their decision while going through the tutorial a few hours later (It was me…I was the ‘some of us’).

Workshop highlights from those who did attend:

That's a lot of coronagraph knowledge in one picture. — Sebastiaan and David twinning with their water bottles.

Day 2: A Disk Enthusiast’s Guide to the Galaxy

Day 2 featured lots of disks. Unfortunately, we were too captivated by the talks to take any photos, so here is a picture of the Philz Iced Mint Mojito (the coffee not the cocktail) that kept me going throughout the week.

#notsponsored — I drank this every day of the week.

Day 3: MagAO-X’s Debut!

Day 3 featured a coronagraphic imaging talk from Professor Haffert. It also marked the triumphant debut of MagAO-X at Sagan 2024.

One day, our field will agree on a universal definition for contrast. But today is not that day.

The famous Pi Pup video with MagAO-X (I heard it makes for a great YouTube channel intro)!

Around this time, Pasadena attempted to do its best Tucson impression, becoming unbearably hot. Luckily, we have a former chef to teach us how to make Queen’s Coffee.

Cold brew coffee and lemonade is a real thing, I swear!

But wait? Where is our advisor you ask? Let’s take a look:

Day 4: The Imagers Behind Images of Imaged Planets

I would be remiss without showing some exciting, direct imaging results at a high contrast imaging workshop. Our friends in UASAL imaged Eps Ind Ab with James Webb!

Sebastiaan directly imaged PDS 70b and c (at one point) with VLT!

This is one of our favorite planetary systems.

I directly imaged this corporate office building with my Samsung Galaxy S9!

At this resolution, we are able to make out the “199 South Los Robles” address in the lower left quadrant.

Day 5: The GMagAO-X Grand Finale

On the final day of the workshop, Jared arrived to give his signature talk on GMagAO-X and it did not disappoint.

The famous waterwheel (featuring Dr. Hedglen and Dr. Kautz).

Imaging exoplanets requires high vizzybility.

Following Jared’s talk, the Arizona contingent gathered for a group photo:

I'm not sure where Sai went. We will need to photoshop him in... — Awww…

Finally, we wrapped up the workshop by presenting some of our group projects:

This was an extremely professional talk. — Eden presenting on post-processing of high contrast imaging data.

And thus concludes a successful workshop!

Song of the Day:

Gojira made history, becoming the first metal band to perform at an Olympics opening ceremony.

Gojira-Ah! Ca ira! Paris Olympics, 2024 opening ceremony.

MagAO-X 2024Ab Day 17: An Intercontinental Tale Told in Pieces of Cheese

Chanco Cheese:

Rating: 4/10

This cheese tasted a lot better on the first day of the MagAO-X observing run. However, by day 17, the mild flavor of the Chilean Chanco cheese just did not speak to me in the same way.

Chanco Served With Jam

Rating: 7/10

My decision to combine Chanco with jam at the very last LCO breakfast of 2024 Ab turned out to be a MAJOR game-changer. The sweet and savory flavors proved to be the perfect pairing like peanut butter with jelly or Jay with disk images or Logan with hedgehog illustrations or Jared with the electronics rack or…well…you get the idea. It’s unfortunate that I made this discovery just before leaving, but perhaps the cheese + jam blend is something to look forward to during my next sojourn in Chile.

Actually butter.

We're drowning in the dairy out here. — I can’t believe it’s not cheese!

Rating: 2/10

This cheese at El Pino was rather disappointing, as it actually turned out to be butter. Jay misled me.

Dairy-free substitutes.

I interrupt my cheese-based recap to showcase some images that are lacking in lactose.

If you squint, the mountains kinda look like cheese. — A view of The Andes from La Serena en route to Santiago.

Rumor has it, the Ruby Tuesday houses some orange + melty items.

LATAM Lounge Cheese

A slice of brie nestled between a strawberry and 3 pieces of lettuce.

Rating: 7/10

The main event of our travel day was none other than the LATAM airlines lounge cheese. Points were deducted for the hefty price of admission: Cash + a crumpled up boarding pass. However, points were added back for Jared being kind enough to invite Jay and me into the lounge. My favorite cheese from this experience was the red wine rind-washed (try saying that 3 times fast) parmesan. Unfortunately, this cheese is not pictured.

LATAM “Gratinated” Ravioli

Rating: 8/10

I was extremely grat(i)ful for the opportunity to partake of this perfect, pomodoro-based pasta. The high ratio of cheesy filling to starchy exterior made this dish particularly appealing.

This dinner deserved its own bonus picture. I awarded additional points for the use of the word “gratinated” in the item description.

LATAM Flight Egg and Cheese Sandwich

Rating: 3/10

Although the cheese wasn’t awful, this sandwich left something to be desired.

Maybe the real cheese was the friends we made along the way.

After a long day + night of travel, Jay and I posed in the ATL airport train (it broke shortly after).

The best 15 minutes of the day:

The first piece of sharp cheddar I will eat when I get home.

P.S. This post was so cheesy that it was banned from the Atlanta airport’s public WiFi network.

Song of the Day:

There Are No Cats In America – An American Tale

MagAO-X 2024Ab Day 8: Let there be light!

And there was light. After 3 tortuous days with nothing to look at but an internal source, we *finally* opened for business. However, as a member of the 2nd observing shift, I was MIA during this time. The below meme described my state of mind in the hours leading up to my shift:

The tiramisu at dinner was very cheesy. — A mood.

While I slumbered, various team members wandered the mountain in search of wildlife:

A cloud pic for our readers in the Cloud Appreciation Society.

When the telescope opened, Jared described the mood as one of giddiness.

It's tomtom. — Alycia searches for a 6-letter word meaning “basic drum.”

Or should I say "the loops." I'm writing this post at 5am, don't judge. — Kian learns the ropes.

At around 2 AM, we closed down once again due to high humidity. This allowed me to hone my skills in MagAO-X alignment, iEFC-ing, and bump mask removal on the internal source.

Mistakes don't count if they're made with an internal source. — Scream if you involuntarily remove the bump mask!

With the telescope closed, Jared went back home in a car covered with ice.

Ice ice maybe. — The outside air may be cold, but our server rack always runs hot.

My brain is running out of real estate, so I’m going to wrap up this blog post.

Highlight of the Day

The best part of the day was being able to once again close the loop on-sky with MagAO-X.

Song of the Day

Upside Down-Jack Johnson

MagAO-X 2024Aa Day 14: A Happy Accident

Every MagAO-X morning begins with a hearty breakfast.

Jialin and Logan enjoying their pigs in a duvet. Jialin constructs a finderscope.

Following a scrumptious meal and a full night of observing, I entered hibernation.

…

Zzzzzzzzzzzz

While I was in my state of low activity, the other group members observed a wild horse and some Vizzies.

“If I were meant to be controlled, I would have come with a remote.” ~ A common wild horse quote

…

ZZZzzzzZZZ

…

I emerged from a long day’s slumber just in time for dinner. Unfortunately there were no food action shots this time.

Eden had an opportunity to experience the LCO flora and fauna before heading back up to the telescope.

A PSA from the desk of Eden ‘Sparkles’ McEwen: Cacti do not make a good chair substitute.

Tonight’s observing run got off to a bit of a dramatic start when the operator discovered a strong amount of coma on the telescope. Although I forgot to collect photographic evidence of the events that immediately followed, I constructed an artistic depiction for everyone’s benefit.

After we recovered from the early evening drama, the night progressed very smoothly. In fact, things were going so well that Jared began regaling some MagAO-Xers with tales from his seafaring youth.

And then…a happy accident occurred! Twins!!!!!

We discovered two companions within this image. Can you spot them? Hint: Look to the upper left.

To close out this fine day (or evening…I have lost all sense of time), I have included a song by my high school band (per Jialin’s request) that I feel is aptly named.

Song of the Day: