Investigating the Cause of the Cosmic Ray Background in IBEX-Hi

Overview

University of Montana, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is a NASA satellite designed to solely measure energetic neutral atoms (ENAs), however, its high energy detector (IBEX-Hi) has also observed a significant rate of cosmic ray particles. In this study, a qualified triple-coincidence event background rate was estimated for the IBEX-Hi detector and analyzed in relation to high energy and high mass cosmic ray data provided by the Cosmic Ray Isotope Spectrometer (CRIS), housed on the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE). Results using the CRIS dataset, with specified energy ranges, show that the shape of the IBEX-Hi background over time most closely matches that of the Z = 26, 431 MeV/nucleon cosmic ray flux. As a cosmic ray's energy increases, its rate of change decreases towards the estimated IBEX-Hi background rate. It is likely that other cosmic rays above Z = 2 are able to generate background once they reach a sufficiently high energy. The reason for this may be that once cosmic rays reach a high mass and energy, they have a high enough stopping power to knock loose electrons within IBEX-Hi that trigger the detector. Ground-based Follow-up Observations of TESS Exoplanet Candidates Sarah Tang Fairview High School Boulder, Colorado William Waalkes University of Colorado, Boulder The goal of this study was to further confirm, characterize, and classify LHS 3844 b, an exoplanet detected by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). Additionally, I strove to determine the likeliness of LHS 3844 b and similar planets as qualified observation candidates for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). These objectives were accomplished by analyzing the stellar light curve, emission spectroscopy metric (ESM), and Planck spectrum of LHS 3844 b. I remotely obtained ground-based images of LHS 3844 b from the El Sauce Observatory. Through the Python programming language, I developed a novel pipeline to convert the calibrated images into a fitted light curve, and through my best-fit light curve model, I classified LHS 3844 b as a terrestrial planet. The calculated ESM of LHS 3844 b surpassed the projected threshold for simulated planets deemed qualified for JWST spectroscopic follow-up, and the Planck spectrum of LHS 3844 b revealed that the observed wavelengths between 6,000 and 10,000 nanometers would produce the highest signal-to-noise spectroscopic observations of LHS 3844 b. These findings will improve the accuracy of spectroscopic follow-ups done by the JWST; I intend to apply these methods to study a variety of exoplanets. Deciphering the Vaping Epidemic: The role of ⍺5 single nucleotide polymorphism on Nicotine Dependence Sid Thakker James Madison High Vienna, Virginia Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, or nAChRs, form the basis of nicotine addiction. The ⍺4β2⍺5 nAChR is the focus of this study. When an individual uses, either a cigarette or an e-cigarette, nicotine is released, rapidly moving from the bloodstream to the brain. There it binds to the nAChRs and results in the opening of the receptor, sodium, and calcium enter into the receptor and potassium exits. The effect of calcium entering releases the neurotransmitter dopamine. Once this transmitter is released the user experiences a pleasurable feeling, which reinforces continued use of the substance to achieve more pleasure, thereby strengthening the addiction. This process is known as the “Dopamine Reward Pathway.” Thus, defining the nicotinic receptor subunit composition in vivo remains a critical issue to be addressed in characterizing the mechanisms underlying addiction. Two tests were conducted to help both characterize and reverse the role of the ⍺5 receptors. Electrophysiology allowed me to distinguish between the ⍺5(D) and ⍺5(N) nAChR subunit variants through ACh stimulated whole cell patch current. After measuring the desensitization rate of both, I was lead to two hypotheses. The new tool that was used to help with the knockdown of the ⍺4β2⍺5 nAChR is the gene editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9. After finding the correct antibody, I was able to with the help of the pX330 DNA plasmid knock-down the ⍺4β2⍺5 nAChR. And to help visualize the knockdown, western blots were performed, allowing me to identify the presence of specific proteins.

Awards (1)

• Poster Peer Awardee

Competition history

• JSHS 2020 Category not listed

Resources

• National JSHS abstract book ↗

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