Projects

Observing Projects

The 24-in is the telescope most used for research. Most recently it has been used to monitor extrasolar planet transits, measure asteroid light curves (to determine spin vectors and shapes of main belt asteroids), and to predict shadow paths for stellar occultations by Pluto and other solar system bodies. Future observing plans for the 24-in may include asteroid rotation lightcurves, occultation candidate stars, follow-up work on near-Earth objects, comets, and Kuiper belt objects.

Publications

Journal Articles

Some articles may be available through the ADS Abstract Service.

WINN J, ADAMS E, LOCKHART M, et al. 2009
The Transit Ingress and the Tilted Orbit of the Extraordinarily Eccentric Exoplanet HD 80606b.
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 703, Issue 2, pp. 2091-2100 (2009).
Stephen M. Slivan, Richard P. Binzel, Mikko Kaasalainen, Andrew N. Hock, Alison J. Klesman, Laura J. Eckelman, Robert D. Stephens 2009
Spin vectors in the Koronis family II. Additional clustered spins, and one stray.
Icarus, Volume 200, Issue 2, April 2009, Pages 514-530.
SLIVAN, S. M., BINZEL, R. P., CRESPO DA SILVA, L. D., KAASALAINEN, M., LYNDAKER, M. M., AND KRCO, M. 2003.
Spin Vectors in the Koronis Family: Comprehensive Results from Two Independent Analyses of 213 Rotation Lightcurves.
Icarus, vol. 162, pp. 285-307.
SLIVAN, S. M. 2002.
Spin Vector Alignment of Koronis Family Asteroids.
Nature, vol. 419, pp. 49-51.
S. W. MCDONALD AND J. L. ELLIOT 2000
TRITON STELLAR OCCULTATION CANDIDATES: 2000-`2009.
THE ASTRONOMICAL JOURNAL, 119:936È944, 2000 February
SLIVAN, STEPHEN M., NIELSEN, ERIC D., AND RIVKIN, TYRA E. 1998.
Rotation Period and Solar Phase Coefficients of 415 Palatia.
Minor Planet Bulletin, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 23-25.
FOUST, JEFFREY A., ELLIOT, J. L., OLKIN, CATHERINE B., MCDONALD, STEPHEN W., DUNHAM, EDWARD W., STONE, REMINGTON P.S., MCDONALD, JOHN S., AND STONE, RONALD C. 1996.
Determination of the Charon-Pluto Mass Ratio from Center-of-Light Astrometry.
Icarus, vol. 126, issue 2, pp. 362-372.
MCDONALD, S. W., AND ELLIOT, J. L. 1996.
Pluto-Charon Stellar Occultation Candidates: 1996-1999.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 112, p. 788.
SLIVAN, S. M. AND BINZEL, R. P. 1996.
Forty-eight New Rotation Lightcurves of 12 Koronis Family Asteroids.
Icarus, vol. 124, no. 2, pp. 452-470.
MCDONALD, S. W., AND ELLIOT, J. L. 1995.
Triton Stellar Occultation Candidates: 1995-1999.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 109, no. 3, pp. 1352-1362.
MCDONALD, S. W., AND ELLIOT, J. L. 1992.
Triton Stellar Occultation Candidates: 1992-1994.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 104, no. 2, pp. 862-879.
DUNHAM, E. W., MCDONALD, S. W., AND ELLIOT, J. L. 1991.
Pluto-Charon Stellar Occultation Candidates: 1990-1995.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 102, pp. 1464-1484.
PETERSON, DEANE M., BARON, R., DUNHAM, E. W., MINK, D., AND ALDERING, G. 1989.
Lunar occultations of Praesepe. II - Massachusetts.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 98, pp. 2156-2158.
SADUN, A. C. AND RESSLER, M. 1986
Photometric Observations of the dwarf Cepheid XX Cygni.
Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Vol. 98, pp. 504-506.
Meech, K. J. 1983
Photoelectric sequences for EX Hydrae, V2051 Ophiuchi, and VV Puppis
Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Publications (ISSN 0004-6280), vol. 95, Sept. 1983, p. 662-665.
Peterson, D. M., Baron, R. L., Dunham, E., & Mink, D.1980
Lunar occultations of the Hyades. II - August 1980
Astronomical Journal, vol. 86, July 1981, p. 1090-1097.
PETERSON, D. M., BARON, R. L., DUNHAM, E., MINK, D., ELLIOT, J. L. AND WEEKES, T. C. 1981.
Lunar occultations of the Hyades - 1979-1980.
Astronomical Journal, vol. 86, pp. 280-289.
GETTYS, J. AND SCHILD, R. 1977
A Photometric Peculiarity Index in the Ap Stars.
Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Vol. 89, pp. 519-523.
MCCORD, T.B., 1976
The George R. Wallace Jr. Astrophysical Observatory.
Bull. Am. Astron. Soc., Vol. 8, p. 267 - 268
BROOKES, M. 1974.
An Inexpensive Automatic Telescope Dome Controller.
Reviews of Scientific Instrumentation, vol. 45, no. 11, pp. 1372-1374.
MCCORD, T. B., SNELLEN, G., AND PAAVOLA, S. 1972
The MIT Automated Astrophysical Observatory.
Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, vol. 84, pp. 220 ff.

Graduate Theses

LOCKHART, M. 2009.
A Transit-Timing Variation Study of the Extrasolar Planet TrES-3
S.M. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
WU, J.P. 2002.
Demonstration of Wallace Astrophysical Observatory's 24-Inch Telescope Upgrade
S.M. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
SLIVAN, S. M. 1995.
Spin-Axis Alignment of Koronis Family Asteroids
PhD thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
CONNER, S. R. 1984.
Photometry of Hyperion
S.M. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Undergraduate Theses

ROJAS, E. R. 2008.
Evaluation, Design, and Construction of the Wallace Astrophysical Observatory Camera for Astronomical Observations
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
FONG, W. 2008.
Extrasolar Planet Transit Photometry as Wallace Astrophysical Observatory
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
COLE, S. J. 2008.
Lightcurve Photometry of the Koronis family: Studying Asteroids (1245) Calvinia and (1068) Nofretet
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
McEwen, H. K. 2004.
Magellan Instant Camera Testbed
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
KLESMAN, A. J. 2003.
Direction of Spin of Koronis Family Member (1289) Kutaïssi
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
WU, J. P. 2000.
Optical Analysis of the Wallace Observatory 24-Inch and Magellan I 6.5-Meter Telescopes
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
NIELSEN, E. D. 1999.
Two New Koronis Family Light Curves
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
WISEMAN, J. J. 1987.
CCD Photometry of Comet P/Wiseman-Skiff
S.B. thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.