Ground-based Astronomy
S. R. Kulkarni
Quarks & Gravity
Quarks -> Cosmos-> Stars -> Planets
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Galactic Forensics & Chronometry
• How did our Galaxy (Milky Way) was put together?
• Were the earliest generation stars very different?
• How is dark matter distributed at the present epoch?
• What is the age of the oldest stars?
Galaxies as Astronomical Laboratories
Planets: Byproducts of Stars
Planets Exist in Abundance
Earth Size Planets around Pulsars
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Gas Giants around Sun-like Stars
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Gravity: The Final Frontier
The Central Black Hole of the Milky Way
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Background
• Astronomy is like particle physics in the sixties: exciting and rapid growth
• Astronomy faculty at Caltech is not slated to grow
• “Make no mean plans” George Ellery Hale
LIGO: Discovery Space
Some thoughts
• We must pick subfields very carefully
• We need to hire very clever experimentalists and leaders in fields where federal investment dominates
• Relying on federal funding will be a capital mistake.
• Leveraging is a must.