I am pursuing a PhD in astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Arizona in the Department of Astronomy, Steward Observatory. I am working on projects related to radio astronomy instrumentation and observation with Dan Marrone's group.
I'm working on the Terahertz Intensity Mapper (TIM), a stratospheric balloon experiment for measuring the star formation history of the universe over ~4.6 billion years of cosmic time. It observes the redshifted [CII] emission line with the intensity mapping technique.
I'm also working on commissioning observations, engineering, and software related to the Tomographic Ionized-carbon Mapping Experiment (TIME), a CO and [CII] intensity mapping instrument.
I've created a tool for running trade studies on the kind of daytime plate-solving star cameras required for balloon missions to point their instruments accurately in high sky brightness conditions. GitHub
My other interests revolve around metrology, including pushing the boundaries of precision in non-contact optical metrology via photogrammetry and computer vision. I explore the impacts of target construction on measurements.
As a side project, I have created a process for aluminizing THz-transparent plastic films to create tunable partially-reflective neutral density filters. These are useful for reducing ambient photon loading to operational levels for instruments that are highly sensitive to atmospheric loading.
In my free time, I like taking photos with film, longboarding, working on bicycles, playing video games, 3D modeling, and hacking coffee makers.
