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Examples of Venus images taken by amateurs showing different features. a 1-micron image of the thermal signal from the surface, showing Phoebe Regio and Beta Regio as dark patches acquired with a 28-cm SCT on May 24, 2012 (credit J. Boudreau). b UV images acquired with a 15-cm apo refractor on March 28, 2012 (credit C. Viladrich). c Enhanced RGB image taken with a 25-cm Gregorian telescope on September 16, 2012 (credit C. Pellier). d A series of near-IR images (850 nm+) taken with the 60cm Cassegrain of the St Véran observatory on September 28, 2012 over more than 3 hours, showing the rotation of the atmosphere (credit G. Monachino and the Astroqueyras association)
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Amateur contributions to professional publications have increased exponentially over the last decades in the field of planetary astronomy. Here we review the different domains of the field in which collaborations between professional and amateur astronomers are effective and regularly lead to scientific publications.We discuss the instruments, dete...
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... filter to get is an infrared filter with transmission centered around 1000 nm (1 micron) to image the thermal emission from the surface. Such filters (like the Schött RG 1000) can be a bit difficult to find but they are inexpensive. Examples of observations in these wavelength ranges are shown in Fig. ...
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... to the team for a rapid and independent confirmation. If the cometary appearance is not obvious, the Full Width at Half Maximum (FWHM) comparison method is applied [128]. The radial photometric profile's FWHM of the asteroid is measured as well as the one from nearby stars (on a stacked image centered along the stars, e.g., with zero motion; see Fig. 15). If the FWHM of the asteroid is significantly larger (at least 25 % greater) than the one from the stars, a coma can be suspected, in particular if the results from the different asteroid stacks are similar. The corresponding image should be circulated within the team, along with the SNR and FWHM measurements for further observations. ...
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... close examination of the overall statistics (Fig. 25) reveals, nevertheless, that, despite a significant increase of the discovery rate in the mid-1990s, the absolute number of discoveries by amateur astronomers or by small telescopes (up to 50 cm in diameter) is, more or less, stable. For telescopes up to 50 cm, i.e., with instruments available in the amateur astronomers community, the ...
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... As our investigations broaden to include lesser documented exoplanets, such as warm Jupiters (gas giants with periods >10 days and <100 days), we further the refinement of our planetary birth and evolution models. Additionally, the merging of new technologies and outreach initiatives has empowered citizen astronomers (e.g., the general public, educators, and students) to fill a critical role in exoplanet discovery and follow up (Fischer et al. 2012;Mousis et al. 2014;Gomez & Fitzgerald 2017;Zellem et al. 2020;Kokori et al. 2022aKokori et al. , 2022bPeluso et al. 2023). Consequently, this can drive us into a new era where democratized astronomical research can benefit both the professional and nonprofessional community. ...
We report the discovery and confirmation of the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) single-transit, warm and dense sub-Saturn, TIC 139270665 b. This planet is unusually dense for its size: with a bulk density of 2.13 g cm ⁻³ (0.645 R J , 0.463 M J ), it is the densest warm sub-Saturn of the TESS family. It orbits a metal-rich G2 star. We also found evidence of a second planet, TIC 139270665 c, with a longer period of 1010 − 220 + 780 days and minimum mass M P sin i of 4.89 − 0.37 + 0.66 M J . First clues of TIC 139270665 b’s existence were found by citizen scientists inspecting TESS photometric data from sector 47 in 2022 January. Radial velocity measurements from the Automated Planet Finder combined with TESS photometry and spectral energy distributions via EXOFASTv2 system modeling suggested a 23.624 − 0.031 + 0.030 day orbital period for TIC 139270665 b and also showed evidence for the second planet. Based on this estimated period, we mobilized the Unistellar citizen science network for photometric follow-up, capitalizing on their global distribution to capture a second transit of TIC 139270665 b. This citizen science effort also served as a test bed for an education initiative that integrates young students into modern astrophysics data collection. The Unistellar photometry did not definitively detect a second transit, but did enable us to further constrain the planet’s period. As a transiting, warm, and dense sub-Saturn, TIC 139270665 b represents an interesting laboratory for further study to enhance our models of planetary formation and evolution.
... Major contributions to the analysis of the zonal winds on Jupiter at visible wavelengths include observations from older missions [7,8], a plethora of data from Cassini during its fly-by in December 2000 [9][10][11][12][13], Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations [14][15][16][17] and, more recently, from the ongoing Juno mission through high-resolution images from JunoCam [18]. Additionally, with more widely available equipment suitable for scientific observations, amateur astronomers are increasingly collaborating with professionals in this regard, offering continuous coverage of several targets, including Jupiter [15,19,20]. ...
We present a new study of Jupiter’s atmosphere dynamics using for the first time the extremely high-resolution capabilities of VLT/ESPRESSO to retrieve wind velocities in Jupiter’s troposphere, with a dedicated ground-based Doppler velocimetry method. This work is primarily a proof-of-concept for retrieving Jupiter’s winds using VLT/ESPRESSO Doppler velocities. These results are complemented by a re-analysis of Cassini’s data from its fly-by of Jupiter in December 2000, performing cloud tracking at visible wavelengths, for cross comparison with Doppler velocimetry results, along with previous cloud-tracking results. We explore the effectiveness of this refined method to measure winds in Jupiter, using high-resolution spectroscopy data obtained from ESPRESSO observations performed in July 2019, with a Doppler velocimetry method based on backscattered solar radiation in the visible range. Coupled with our ground-based results, we retrieved a latitudinal and longitudinal profile of Jupiter’s winds along select bands of the atmosphere. Comparing the results between cloud-tracking methods, based on previous reference observations, and our new Doppler velocimetry approach, we found a good agreement between them, demonstrating the effectiveness of this technique. The winds obtained in this exploratory study have a two-fold relevance: they contribute to the temporal and spatial variability study of Jupiter’s troposphere dynamics, and the results presented here also validate the use of this Doppler technique to study the dynamics of Jupiter’s atmosphere and pave the way for further exploration of a broader region of Jupiter’s disk for a more comprehensive retrieval of winds and to evaluate their spatial and temporal variability.
... Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations [10,18,22,50] and more recently from the ongoing Juno mission through high resolution images from JunoCam [16]. Additionally, with more widely available equipment suitable for scientific observations, amateur astronomers are increasingly collaborating with professionals in this regard, offering continuous coverage of several targets, including Jupiter [2,18,39] Even though this volume of data, complemented by other kinds of observations, such as infrared and radio, allows in depth exploration of the dynamics of Jupiter's atmosphere, winds at tropospheric levels have mostly been obtained with cloud-tracking techniques, which follow large patterns moving in the observable atmosphere of Jupiter. Recent efforts in studying the dynamics of the tropospheric region of Jupiter with other techniques such as high-resolution spectroscopy are gaining momentum , with the improvement of facilities which enable increased spectral resolution [12,13]. ...
We present a new study of Jupiter atmosphere’s dynamics using for the first time the extremely high resolution capabilities of VLT/ESPRESSO to retrieve wind velocities in Jupiter’s troposphere, with a dedicated ground-based Doppler velocimetry method. These results are complemented by a deeper analysis of Cassini data during its flyby of Jupiter in December 2000, performing cloud tracking at visible wavelengths, obtaining a more comprehensive dynamical interpretation. We explore the effectiveness of this new method to measure winds in Jupiter, using high resolution spectroscopy data obtained from ESPRESSO observations performed in July 2019, with a Doppler velocimetry method based on back scattered solar radiation in the visible range. Coupled with our ground based results, we retrieved a latitudinal and longitudinal profile of Jupiter’s winds along select bands of the atmosphere. Comparing the results between cloud tracking methods, based on previous reference observations, and our new Doppler velocimetry approach we found a good agreement between them, demonstrating the eectiveness of this technique. The winds obtained in this exploratory study have a two-fold relevance: they contribute for the temporal and spatial variability study of Jupiter troposphere’s dynamics, and also the results presented here validate this Doppler technique to study the dynamics of Jupiter’s atmosphere and pave the way for further exploration of a broader region of Jupiter’s disk for a more comprehensive retrieval of winds and to evaluate their spatial and temporal variability.
... Different spatial resolutions over Neptune's disc were obtained on different nights. Three southern-latitude features during 2019 were particularly large and long-lived -they persisted for months on Neptune and were large and bright enough at red and near-IR wavelengths to be detected by the telescopes of amateur astronomers also using lucky imaging Mousis et al. (2014). With the addition of these large telescopes and amateur astronomer data, the time between observations of these 3 features was reduced to days instead of weeks. ...
Using near-infrared observations of Neptune from the Keck and Lick Observatories, and the Hubble Space Telescope in combination with amateur datasets, we calculated the drift rates of prominent infrared-bright cloud features on Neptune between 2018 and 2021. These features had lifespans of $\sim 1$ day to $\geq$1 month and were located at mid-latitudes and near the south pole. Our observations permitted determination of drift rates via feature tracking. These drift rates were compared to three zonal wind profiles describing Neptune's atmosphere determined from features tracked in H band (1.6 $\mu m$), K' band (2.1 $\mu m$), and Voyager 2 data at visible wavelengths. Features near $-70 \deg$ measured in the F845M filter (845nm) were particularly consistent with the K' wind profile. The southern mid-latitudes hosted multiple features whose lifespans were $\geq$1 month, providing evidence that these latitudes are a region of high stability in Neptune's atmosphere. We also used HST F467M (467nm) data to analyze a dark, circumpolar wave at $- 60 \deg$ latitude observed on Neptune since the Voyager 2 era. Its drift rate in recent years (2019-2021) is $4.866 \pm 0.009 \deg $/day. This is consistent with previous measurements by Karkoschka (2011), which predict a $4.858 \pm 0.022 \deg$/day drift rate during these years. It also gained a complementary bright band just to the north.
... As storms, vortices, and the planetary bands evolve and shift over timescales ranging from days to years, ground-based records can be used to track meteorological features. Lucky-imaging techniques employed by amateur astronomers (Mousis et al. 2014) produce high-quality Jupiter imaging on a near nightly basis. By stacking only the sharpest frames, observers can reduce the blurring effects of atmospheric seeing to create excellent images, which are then shared with the community via repositories such as the Planetary Virtual Observatory (PVOL, Hueso et al. 2018b) and the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO-Japan 2 ). ...
ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) will provide a detailed investigation of the Jovian system in the 2030s, combining a suite of state-of-the-art instruments with an orbital tour tailored to maximise observing opportunities. We review the Jupiter science enabled by the JUICE mission, building on the legacy of discoveries from the Galileo, Cassini, and Juno missions, alongside ground- and space-based observatories. We focus on remote sensing of the climate, meteorology, and chemistry of the atmosphere and auroras from the cloud-forming weather layer, through the upper troposphere, into the stratosphere and ionosphere. The Jupiter orbital tour provides a wealth of opportunities for atmospheric and auroral science: global perspectives with its near-equatorial and inclined phases, sampling all phase angles from dayside to nightside, and investigating phenomena evolving on timescales from minutes to months. The remote sensing payload spans far-UV spectroscopy (50-210 nm), visible imaging (340-1080 nm), visible/near-infrared spectroscopy (0.49-5.56 $\mu$m), and sub-millimetre sounding (near 530-625\,GHz and 1067-1275\,GHz). This is coupled to radio, stellar, and solar occultation opportunities to explore the atmosphere at high vertical resolution; and radio and plasma wave measurements of electric discharges in the Jovian atmosphere and auroras. Cross-disciplinary scientific investigations enable JUICE to explore coupling processes in giant planet atmospheres, to show how the atmosphere is connected to (i) the deep circulation and composition of the hydrogen-dominated interior; and (ii) to the currents and charged particle environments of the external magnetosphere. JUICE will provide a comprehensive characterisation of the atmosphere and auroras of this archetypal giant planet.
... While there is not enough time available on large (1 m), professional-grade telescopes to conduct the photometric follow-up observations needed for exoplanet studies, citizen scientists using smaller telescopes are fully capable of collecting these data. Since the first confirmed transiting exoplanet, HD 209458b, was discovered in 1999 (Charbonneau et al. 2000), the democratization of digital imaging, technology, the Internet, widespread affordability of charge-coupled device and complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) detector sensors, and availability of robotic telescopes has caused citizen science astronomy efforts to increase rapidly (Mousis et al. 2014;Gomez & Fitzgerald 2017). Although HD 209458b was observed by professional astronomers, they utilized equipment accessible to most astronomy hobbyists; they used a ∼10 cm telescope with a camera that Tim Brown built in his garage (Sincell 1999). ...
... For exoplanet science, citizen scientists can collaborate with professionals in their searches (e.g., Henden 2011;Fischer et al. 2012;Kokori et al. 2022aKokori et al. , 2022bMousis et al. 2014;Baluev et al. 2015;Marshall et al. 2015;Zellem et al. 2019Zellem et al. , 2020. These authors reviewed the contributions of citizen science in the study of exoplanets, and this paper intends to build on their seminal work and others. ...
... One possible solution to the infrastructure challenges for more generalized exoplanet follow-up confirmation and monitoring is to engage citizen scientists. Large exoplanet survey missions require the assistance of ground-based followups, specifically from the amateur astronomy citizen science community, because it is logistically impossible for the professional community alone to handle the volume of incoming data (Henden 2011;Mousis et al. 2014;Kempton et al. 2018). In addition to follow-up transit observations, UE plans to search for new transits by observing the large collection of planets that have currently only been observed through radial velocity (RV) and are unknown to also have a transit (Kane et al. 2011). ...
This paper presents early results from and prospects for exoplanet science using a citizen science private/public partnership observer network managed by the SETI Institute in collaboration with Unistellar. The network launched in 2020 January and includes 163 citizen scientist observers across 21 countries. These observers can access a citizen science mentoring service developed by the SETI Institute and are also equipped with Unistellar Enhanced Vision Telescopes. Unistellar technology and the campaign’s associated photometric reduction pipeline enable each telescope to readily obtain and communicate light curves to observers with signal-to-noise ratio suitable for publication in research journals. Citizen astronomers of the Unistellar Exoplanet (UE) Campaign routinely measure transit depths of ≳1% and contribute their results to the exoplanet research community. The match of the detection system, targets, and scientific and educational goals is robust. Results to date include 281 transit detections out of 651 processed observations. In addition to this campaign’s capability to contribute to the professional field of exoplanet research, UE endeavors to drive improved science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education outcomes by engaging students and teachers as participants in science investigations, that is, learning science by doing science.
... (NC) coming years. Among other examples, commercial-grade RGB cameras have proven to be valuable science tools for night sky brightness measurement (Hänel et al. 2018;Jechow et al. 2018;Bertolo et al. 2019;Jechow et al. 2019a,b;Jechow 2019;Jechow & Hölker 2019;Kolláth et al. 2020), radiometry of artificial light polluting sources from Earth-orbit platforms (Kyba et al. 2014;Stefanov et al. 2017;Zheng et al. 2018;Sánchez de Miguel et al. 2019;Sánchez de Miguel et al. 2020), as well as from airborne (Kuechly et al. 2012;Bouroussis & Topalis 2020), and ground based stations (Dobler et al. 2015;Meier 2018; Bará et al. 2019), meteor and fireball detection (Gural & Šegon 2009), planetary astronomy (Mousis et al. 2014), and variable stars (Blackford 2016). ...
Although the use of RGB photometry has exploded in the last decades due to the advent of high-quality and inexpensive digital cameras equipped with Bayer-like color filter systems, there is surprisingly no catalogue of bright stars that can be used for calibration purposes. Since due to their excessive brightness, accurate enough spectrophotometric measurements of bright stars typically cannot be performed with modern large telescopes, we have employed historical 13-color medium-narrow-band photometric data, gathered with quite reliable photomultipliers, to fit the spectrum of 1346 bright stars using stellar atmosphere models. This not only constitutes a useful compilation of bright spectrophotometric standards well spread in the celestial sphere, the UCM library of spectrophotometric spectra, but allows the generation of a catalogue of reference RGB magnitudes, with typical random uncertainties ∼0.01 mag. For that purpose, we have defined a new set of spectral sensitivity curves, computed as the median of 28 sets of empirical sensitivity curves from the literature, that can be used to establish a standard RGB photometric system. Conversions between RGB magnitudes computed with any of these sets of empirical RGB curves and those determined with the new standard photometric system are provided. Even though particular RGB measurements from single cameras are not expected to provide extremely accurate photometric data, the repeatability and multiplicity of observations will allow access to a large amount of exploitable data in many astronomical fields, such as the detailed monitoring of light pollution and its impact on the night sky brightness, or the study of meteors, solar system bodies, variable stars, and transient objects. In addition, the RGB magnitudes presented here make the sky an accessible and free laboratory for the calibration of the cameras themselves.
... (NC) coming years. Among other examples, commercial-grade RGB cameras have proven to be valuable science tools for night sky brightness measurement (Hänel et al. 2018;Jechow et al. 2018;Bertolo et al. 2019;Jechow et al. 2019a,b;Jechow 2019;Jechow & Hölker 2019;Kolláth et al. 2020), radiometry of artificial light polluting sources from Earth-orbit platforms (Kyba et al. 2014;Stefanov et al. 2017;Zheng et al. 2018;Sánchez de Miguel et al. 2019;Sánchez de Miguel et al. 2020), as well as from airborne (Kuechly et al. 2012;Bouroussis & Topalis 2020), and ground based stations (Dobler et al. 2015;Meier 2018; Bará et al. 2019), meteor and fireball detection (Gural & Šegon 2009), planetary astronomy (Mousis et al. 2014), and variable stars (Blackford 2016). ...
Although the use of RGB photometry has exploded in the last decades due to the advent of high-quality and inexpensive digital cameras equipped with Bayer-like color filter systems, there is surprisingly no catalogue of bright stars that can be used for calibration purposes. Since due to their excessive brightness, accurate enough spectrophotometric measurements of bright stars typically cannot be performed with modern large telescopes, we have employed historical 13-color medium-narrow-band photometric data, gathered with quite reliable photomultipliers, to fit the spectrum of 1346 bright stars using stellar atmosphere models. This not only constitutes a useful compilation of bright spectrophotometric standards well spread in the celestial sphere, the UCM library of spectrophotometric spectra, but allows the generation of a catalogue of reference RGB magnitudes, with typical random uncertainties $\sim 0.01$ mag. For that purpose, we have defined a new set of spectral sensitivity curves, computed as the median of 28 sets of empirical sensitivity curves from the literature, that can be used to establish a standard RGB photometric system. Conversions between RGB magnitudes computed with any of these sets of empirical RGB curves and those determined with the new standard photometric system are provided. Even though particular RGB measurements from single cameras are not expected to provide extremely accurate photometric data, the repeatability and multiplicity of observations will allow access to a large amount of exploitable data in many astronomical fields, such as the detailed monitoring of light pollution and its impact on the night sky brightness, or the study of meteors, solar system bodies, variable stars, and transient objects. In addition, the RGB magnitudes presented here make the sky an accessible and free laboratory for the calibration of the cameras themselves.
... In analyzing visual data from multiple observers, questions inevitably arise of which data to reject, and under what justification, and whether combining data from observers, each with his or her own systematic errors, leads to a biased result. Without instrumental calibration, there is no certain answer to these questions, but as discussed by Kidger (2002) and Mousis et al. (2014), such calibration is itself problematic, and in any case is not available for the observations discussed here. ...
The great comet C/1995 O1 (Hale–Bopp) presented a remarkable opportunity to study its long-term brightness over four years. We used 2240 observations published in the International Comet Quarterly from 17 observers during 1995 July to 1999 September to create a secular lightcurve. In order to account for observer differences, we present a novel algorithm to reduce scatter and increase precision in a lightcurve compiled from many sources. It is implemented in a publicly available code, ICQSPLITTER, which uses a self-consistent statistical approach. To first order, the comet’s lightcurve approximates an r ⁻⁴ response for both pre- and postperihelion distances. The preperihelion data are better fit with a fifth-order polynomial with inflection points at 4.0, 2.6, 2.1, and 1.1 au, some of which are associated with physical changes in the coma. Outbursts may have occurred a few days before perihelion and at ∼2.2 and 7.4 au postperihelion. The Afρ values derived from the final magnitudes are consistent with an r −1.5 dependence on heliocentric distance and are within a factor of 2–4 of those derived from spectroscopy and narrowband photometry. We present correlation equations for visual magnitudes and CO and H 2 O production rates that are consistent with the preperihelion brightness increasing due to CO outgassing until about 2.6–3.0 au from the Sun and then are strongly correlated with H 2 O production rates. We also present two generalized correlation equations that may be useful for observation planning and data analysis with the James Webb Space Telescope and other observatories.
... Amateurs often do research through "pro-am" collaborations in which professional astronomers work directly with, or use data collected by, amateur astronomers, providing strong benefits for both amateurs and professionals (Henden, 2011;Price, 2012). Amateurs have supported planetary exploration including the monitoring of Jupiter in connection with the Juno mission (Orton, 2012) and other planetary science research (Mousis et al., 2014). Exoplanet Watch (https:// exoplanets.nasa.gov/exoplanet-watch/about-exoplanet-watch/), ...
Astronomy has an advantage over other sciences in the existence of a very large and active amateur scientist community with which to leverage interest, outreach, and research efforts. In this chapter we provide a broad overview of amateur astronomy, how it can connect the public to professional astronomy through direct involvement with the public, and how it is sustained through the creation of social groups and networks, both physical and online This chapter reviews the limited literature on the topic, as well as draws on interviews and stories from 53 people from across the spectrum of amateur astronomy involvement. We discuss historic demographics heavily skewed towards particular ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic categories, as well as new initiatives to increase diversity among the range of amateur astronomers. Through ongoing interest, support, and innovation, there is much promise in the capacity for three broad types of amateur astronomers - the independent explorers, outreach agents and researchers - to make a powerful contribution to Public Outreach. This may even have been amplified by the necessary diversification of approaches forced upon independent amateurs, societies, and organizations in the face of the recent world-wide pandemic. Lastly, we share thoughts for the future of amateur astronomy and share profiles of four relatively young amateur astronomers who exemplify crossing the boundaries of amateur astronomy from independent explorers, outreach agents, and researchers.
