Chelen Johnson
This virtual team collects all independent research presented in 2013, and done by NITARP or Spitzer alumni with students outside of a formal NITARP team. In 2013, we have one article in The Physics Teacher, and one poster on young stars.
I discovered that meaningful astronomical research does not require access to meter-class observatories or a Beowulf cluster. Given the right professional to collaborate with, it is something that I'm able to do while still working at the planetarium.
There was purpose to my wandering. [..]Last year [the AAS] was logistically and culturally educational, this year was truly informative. I felt much less out of place.
I love learning about the myriad ways astronomers figure out how to make lemonade out of lemons. It almost seems like cheating sometimes, but it isn't. Astronomers are just so crafty when it comes to figuring out how to make the best use of the data they have.
