Workshop 2023

Workshop on Observational Techniques

21 August – 1 September 2023 at Ondřejov observatory

Overview

The Stellar Physics Department at ASU in collaboration with the Stellar Astrophysics Group at Potsdam University in Germany is going to organize thired international Observational Techniques Workshop 2023 from Monday August 21 to Friday September 1, 2023 at the observatory in Ondřejov.

The workshop consists of lectures and practical exercises, and aims at teaching the students how to prepare and conduct an observing run, how to select targets using data-mining techniques, and how to process and analyze photometric and spectroscopic data. The students will have an opportunity to learn how to observe with the echelle spectrograph OES at the Perek telescope and how to perform photometric observation at the Mayer 65-cm telescopes in Ondřejov. Besides gaining unique expertise in observational astrophysics, students will also have the opportunity to significantly contribute to specific ongoing science projects (TBD).

The workshop is open to interested students from the Stellar Astrophysics Group at Potsdam University in Germany, from the Department of Theoretical Physics and Astrophysics at Masaryk University in Brno (course F9146 Observational techniques), and from the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at Charles University in Prague (course NAST018 Special practicum II).

More information about the last Workshop in 2022 can be found here.

Registration

For Czech students only: registration to the workshop should be done by sending an e-mail to workshop2023@sunstel.asu.cas.cz with following information:

  • First, Middle, & Last Name
  • Gender
  • University and Department
  • Career status (bachelor, MSc, or PhD student)
  • Level of Linux and IRAF usage knowledge.

Due to the accommodation capacity and the format of the workshop, the number of participants is limited to 12 students.

There is no registration fee.

Registration is open until June 30, 2023.

Accommodation

All participants of the workshop will be accommodated at the Ondřejov observatory for free of charge.

Organization

Scientific Organizing Committee (SOC)

  • Prof. Stephan Geier
  • M.Sc. Matti Dorsch
  • Dr. Brankica Kubátová

Local Organizing Committee (LOC)

  • Dr. Brankica Kubátová (chair)
  • Dr. Tiina Liimets
  • M.Sc. Mauricio Cabezas
  • Doc. Jiří Kubát

Lecturers

  • Prof. Stephan Geier (Potsdam University)
  • M.Sc. Matti Dorsch (PhD student, Potsdam University)
  • M.Sc. Harry Dawson (PhD student, Potsdam University)
  • M.Sc. Rick Culpan (PhD student, Potsdam University)
  • M.Sc. Aakash Bhat (PhD student, Potsdam University)
  • M.Sc. Mauricio Cabezas (PhD student, Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Dr. Tiina Liimets (Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Dr. Brankica Kubátová (Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Dr. Petr Škoda (Astronomical Institute AS CR)

Observer Support at the Telescopes

  • Dr. Miroslav Šlechta (Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Jiří Srba (Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Mgr. Jan Kára (PhD student, Charles University in Prague)

Technical support and software installation

  • Roman Vesely (Astronomical Institute AS CR)
  • Jiří Srba (Astronomical Institute AS CR)

Programme

Monday (August 21, 2023)

  • 10:30 – 11:30
    • The Perek 2m telescope tour (Miroslav Šlechta)
  • 11:30 – 12:00
    • Welcoming (Stephan Geier & Brankica Kubátová)
  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 19:00

Tuesday (August 22, 2023)

  • 9:00-12:00
  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 18:00
    • Data mining with Topcat (Rick Culpan)
    • Hands-on session: preparing a target list (Harry Dawson & Rick Culpan)
  • 18:00-19:30
    • Dinner break
  • 19:30 – …
    • Guided tour talk: the Mayer 65-cm telescope in Ondřejov (Jan Kára)
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Wednesday (August 23, 2023)

  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 18:00
    • Introduction to IRAF (Harry Dawson) Presentation
    • Data reduction of the echelle spectra using IRAF (Mauricio Cabezas) Presentation
    • Hands-on session: reducing spectra (Mauricio Cabezas & Tiina Liimets)
  • 18:00-19:30
    • Dinner break
  • 19:30 – …
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Thursday (August 24, 2023)

  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 18:00
    • Data reduction of photometry (Harry Dawson) Presentation
    • Hands-on session: reducing photometric images (Harry Dawson & Aakash Bhat & Tiina Liimets)
  • 18:00-19:30
    • Dinner break
  • 19:30 – …
    • Guided tour talk: the Mayer 65-cm telescope in Ondřejov (Jan Kára)
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Friday (August 25, 2023)

  • 14:00 – 18:00
    • Hands-on session: reducing the echelle spectra and photometric images with IRAF (Harry Dawson & Aakash Bhat & Mauricio Cabezas & Tiina Liimets) Presentation 1, Presentation 2
  • 18:00-19:30
    • Dinner break
  • 19:30 – …
    • Guided tour talk: the Mayer 65-cm telescope in Ondřejov (Jan Kára)
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Saturday and Sunday (August 26-27, 2023)

  • 19:30 – …
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Monday (August 28, 2023)

  • 9:00 – 12:00
    • Work on projects after an introduction to data analysis. Preparation of presentations in which students should describe the data acquisition, reduction, and analysis based on what they were taught. Presentations should also have a short introduction outlining the main astrophysical concepts involved and a results/conclusions section. Presentation
  • 12:00 – 14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 18:00
    • Work on projects
  • 18:00-19:30
    • Dinner break
  • 19:30 – …
    • Guided tour talk: the Mayer 65-cm telescope in Ondřejov (Jan Kára)
    • Spectroscopy observation with the Perek 2m telescope and photometric observation with the Mayer 65cm telescope (if the weather forecast allows)

Tuesday (August 29, 2023)

  • 9:00 – 12:00
    • Work on projects
  • 12:00 – 14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00 – 15:00
    • Observatory tour (Jiří Srba)
  • 15:00 – 19:00
    • Work on the projects

Wednesday (August 30, 2023)

  • 9:00 – 12:00
    • Work on the projects
  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00-15:00
    • Basics of quantitative spectroscopy (Brankica Kubátová) Presentation
  • 15:00-19:00
    • Work on the projects or free day

Thursday (August 31, 2023)

  • 9:00-12:00
    • Work on the projects
  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break
  • 14:00-15:00
    • Stellar Spectroscopy with Virtual Observatory (Petr Škoda) Presentation
  • 15:00-19:00
    • Work on the projects

Friday (September 1, 2023)

  • 9:00-12:00
    • Presentations of the projects of each group
  • 12:00-14:00
    • Lunch break

Coffee breaks will be introduced as needed after agreement with all participants.

Students presentations

  1. Ramona Valková, Hemish Delvadiya, and Artem Gorodilov – Presentation
  2. Aman Mohan, Ramon Jaeger, Henry Willems, and Kadir Tolkay Uludag – Presentation

Venue & Travel  information

The Institute is located in village Ondřejov 30 km south-east of Prague city limits near the highway D1. It can be reached by car, by bus or you can take train and walk the rest. Ondřejov and the surrounding countryside is also a popular target for bicycle trips.

Fly to Prague Airport and arrange for someone to pick you up and drive you to the Institute. This is far the best option. A cab would cost you about 80 EUR. If you prefer public transport on your own, be prepared for another two hours of traveling. Take bus 119 outside the airport terminal, go to Nádraží Veleslavín and change for metro line A there. Continue by metro to Háje changing to line C at Muzeum and then use bus route 383 (timetable).

Traveling by car, take exit 21 on D1 highway Praha–Brno (direction Benešov). Right after the highway exit take a turn, enter village Mirošovice and head for Mnichovice. Continue about 4 kilometres and turn right in Mnichovice towards Ondřejov, where at the beginning of the village (by a sawmill) you will see a sign pointing left to the Institute.

Ondřejov is served by two ROPID (Prague local transport authority) bus routes. Route 383 (timetable) goes from Prague and starts at Háje station (metro line C terminus). The ride takes approx. 60 minutes. Alternatively, you can take train to Strančice and change to bus route 490 there (25 min; timetable).

Tickets can also be purchased via SMS or the Lítačka mobile app, which can also be used to search for the ideal public transport connection. The application is available for Android or iOS. 

More information about transportation, prices and connections can be found at http://www.dpp.cz/en/

Trains from Prague main railway station stop at Strančice from where you can take bus 490, or get off at Mirošovice or Senohraby and have a pleasant walk (5 km; follow tourist marking).

Contact

For all further information please contact the Local Organizing Committee at the following email address: workshop2023@sunstel.asu.cas.cz.