Steward PhD Alum Feature: The Vera C. Rubin Observatory has Discovered 11,000 New Asteroids, and It's Barely Even Started!
A model of the inner Solar System showing the asteroids discovered by Rubin in light teal. Known asteroids are dark blue.
NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NSF NOIRLab/SLAC/AURA/R/NASA/Goddard/ESA/Gaia/DPAC
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory was built with an ambitious purpose in mind. As part of its 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), the Rubin Observatory will gather about 30 petabytes of data. This will include creating an inventory of the Solar System, transient objects (such as supernovae and variable stars), and mapping the Milky Way. Using preliminary data gathered by the Observatory, scientists have already discovered 11,000 new asteroids in the Solar System. These results were confirmed by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (IAU-MPC).
Ari Heinze, a research assistant at the University of Washington and a PhD alum from U of A's Department of Astronomy, built the software that enabled their detection with Jacob Kurlander, a graduate student at the University of Washington. As he noted:
"Rubin’s unique observing cadence required a whole new software architecture for asteroid discovery. We built it, and it works. Even with just early, engineering-quality data, Rubin discovered 11,000 asteroids and measured more precise orbits for tens of thousands more. It seems pretty clear this observatory will revolutionize our knowledge of the asteroid belt."
Ari Heinze earned his Ph.D from U of A's Department of Astronomy. He helped developed software for the Vera Rubin Observatory's LSST, leading to the recent discovery of over 11,000 new asteroids and orbital improvements for more. His work will help revolutionize VRO in this area of mapping, and understanding the origin of, our Solar System.