Anthony Brown (scientist)

Last updated
Anthony G.A. Brown
Born (1969-05-12) May 12, 1969 (age 55)
NationalityDutch
EducationPh.D.
Alma materUniversity of Leiden
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
Doctoral advisor Tim de Zeeuw

Anthony George Alexander Brown [1] (born 12 May 1969 [2] ) is a Dutch astronomer currently working at the University of Leiden most noted for leading the Gaia project's Data Processing and Analysis Consortium. He was listed in the 2018 Nature's 10 as one of the Ten people who mattered this year by the scientific journal Nature. [3]

Contents

Biography

Anthony Brown obtained his Master of Science degree cum laude in Astronomy from the University of Leiden in 1991, where he also obtained his PhD in 1996 on the topic of the stellar content and evolution of OB associations. [4] [5] After postdoc positions at the University of Leiden, the National Astronomical Observatory (Mexico), and the European Southern Observatory (Germany), he rejoined the University of Leiden first as a research associate from 2001 to 2006, and then as faculty member.

His involvement with the Gaia mission started in 1997 with contributions to the science case for the mission. As a member of the photometric and classification working groups, he contributed to the optimization of the photometric filter system, and has been a member of the Gaia science team since 2006. He was appointed Chair of the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC) Executive in 2012, and is the corresponding author of Gaia Data Release 1 and 2. [6] [7]

He delivered the prestigious Spitzer Lectures at Princeton University in 2019. [8] [9]

Selected papers

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HD 108147</span> Star in the constellation of Crux

HD 108147, also known as Tupã, is a 7th magnitude star in the constellation of Crux in direct line with and very near to the bright star Acrux or Alpha Crucis. It is either a yellow-white or yellow dwarf, slightly brighter and more massive than the Sun. The spectral type is F8 V or G0 V. The star is also younger than the Sun. Due to its distance, about 126 light years, it is too dim to be visible with unaided eye; with binoculars it is an easy target. However, due to its southerly location it is not visible in the northern hemisphere except for the tropics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolf 1061</span> Star in the constellation Ophiuchus

Wolf 1061 is an M-class red dwarf star located about 14.1 light-years away in the constellation Ophiuchus. It is the 36th-closest-known star system to the Sun and has a relatively high proper motion of 1.2 seconds of arc per year. Wolf 1061 does not have any unusual spectroscopic features.

14 Canis Minoris, also known as HD 65345, is a single star in the equatorial constellation of Canis Minor. It is faintly visible to the naked eye with an apparent visual magnitude of +5.30. The distance to this star, as determined from an annual parallax shift of 13.50±0.34 mas, is approximately 242 light years. 14 CMI has a relatively large proper motion, traversing the celestial sphere at the rate of 0.188 arcsecond/year. It is moving further from the Sun with heliocentric radial velocity of +42.6 km/s.

HD 42818 is a suspected astrometric binary star system in the northern circumpolar constellation of Camelopardalis. It is visible to the naked eye with an apparent visual magnitude of +4.76. Based upon an annual parallax shift of 18.64±0.23 mas as seen from Earth's orbit, it is located some 175 light years away. The system appears to be moving closer with a heliocentric radial velocity of −7 km/s. As of 2012, it is estimated that the system will make its closest approach to the Sun in 485,000 years at a distance of around 169.2 ly (51.87 pc).

HD 132406 is a star in the northern constellation of Boötes. With an apparent visual magnitude of 8.45, it is invisible to the naked eye. The distance to this star is 230 light-years based on parallax, but it is drifting closer with a radial velocity of −37.8 km/s. The star has an absolute magnitude of 4.30. It has one confirmed exoplanet companion.

HD 213240 is a possible binary star system in the constellation Grus. It has an apparent visual magnitude of 6.81, which lies below the limit of visibility for normal human sight. The system is located at a distance of 133.5 light years from the Sun based on parallax. The primary has an absolute magnitude of 3.77.

WASP-7, also identified as HD 197286, is a type F star located about 520 light years away in the constellation Microscopium. This star is a little larger and about 28% more massive than the Sun and is also brighter and hotter. At magnitude 9 the star cannot be seen by the naked eye but is visible through a small telescope.

WASP-14 or BD+22 2716 is a star in the constellation Boötes. The SuperWASP project has observed and classified this star as a variable star, perhaps due to the eclipsing planet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R Boötis</span> Star in the constellation Boötes

R Boötis is a variable star in the northern constellation of Boötes. The star's brightness varies tremendously, ranging from apparent magnitude 6.0, when it might be faintly visible to the naked eye under very good observing conditions, to 13.3, when a fairly large telescope would be required to see it. The distance to this star is approximately 2,150 light years based on parallax measurements. It is drifting closer with a radial velocity of about −58 km/s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RX Andromedae</span> Cataclysmic variable star system in the constellation Andromeda

RX Andromedae is a variable star in the constellation of Andromeda. Although it is classified as a dwarf nova of the Z Camelopardalis (UGZ) type, it has shown low-luminosity periods typical of VY Sculptoris stars. However, for most of the time it varies from an apparent visual magnitude of 15.1 at minimum brightness to a magnitude of 10.2 at maximum brightness, with a period of approximately 13 days.

29 Camelopardalis is a double star in the circumpolar constellation Camelopardalis. With an apparent magnitude of 6.59, it's right below the max visibility to the naked eye, and can only be viewed under phenomenal conditions. The star is located 484 light years away based on parallax, but is drifting further away with a radial velocity of 3.9 km/s.

HD 134060, also known by its Gould designation of 38 G. Circini, is a star in the southern constellation of Circinus. It is near the lower limit of stars visible to the naked eye, having an apparent visual magnitude of 6.29. The distance to HD 134060, as determined using an annual parallax shift measurement of 41.59 mas, is 78.4 light years. It is moving further away with a heliocentric radial velocity of 43.5 km/s, having come within 34.6 ly some 439,000 years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">83 Ursae Majoris</span> Candidate binary star system in the constellation Ursa Major

83 Ursae Majoris is a candidate binary star system in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Major. It is a semiregular variable star, and it has been given the variable star designation IQ Ursae Majoris. It ranges in brightness from apparent visual magnitude 4.69 to 4.75, making it visible to the naked eye under good observing conditions. Percy and Au (1994) identified it as a small amplitude red variable with an irregular behavior, having a characteristic time scale of 20 days. Based upon an annual parallax shift of 5.60 mas, it is located roughly 580 light years from the Sun. The system is moving closer with a heliocentric radial velocity of −18.6 km/s.

57 Persei, or m Persei, is a suspected triple star system in the northern constellation of Perseus. It is at the lower limit of visibility to the naked eye, having a combined apparent visual magnitude of 6.08. The annual parallax shift of 16.4 mas provides a distance measure of 199 light years. 57 Persei is moving closer to the Sun with a radial velocity of about −23 km/s and will make perihelion in around 2.6 million years at a distance of roughly 22 ly (6.6 pc).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SY Muscae</span> Star in the constellation Musca

SY Muscae is a binary star system in the constellation Musca composed of a red giant and a white dwarf. Its apparent magnitude varies from 10.2 to 12.7 over a period of 624.5 days. Although the binary is a symbiotic star system, it is unusual in that it does not have an eruptive component. It is an S-type symbiotic system, which means that the light comes from the stars rather than surrounding dust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gliese 402</span> Star in the constellation Leo

Gliese 402 is a star located 22.7 light years from the Solar System. Located in the constellation of Leo, it is also known as Wolf 358 from its entry in Max Wolf's star catalogue. The stars nearest to Gliese 402 are Gliese 393, at 3.43 light years, Gliese 408, at 6.26 light years, and Gliese 382 at 6.66 light years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 7419</span> Open cluster in the constellation Cepheus

NGC 7419 is an open cluster in the constellation Cepheus. It is heavily reddened and notable for containing five red supergiants, the highest number known in any cluster until the end of the 20th century, but probably no blue supergiants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amina Helmi</span>

Amina Helmi is an Argentine astronomer and professor at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">V1315 Aquilae</span> Variable star in the constellation Aquila

V1315 Aquilae is a cataclysmic variable star in the north of the equatorial constellation of Aquila. It is in the sub-set of nova-like (NL) variables, specifically a SW Sextantis star. These were characterized as having non-magnetic white dwarfs – thus that do not undergo dwarf-nova bright luminations ("eruptions"). There is countering evidence for some magnetism. Being a SW Sextantis star, V1315 Aquilae has a high rate of mass transfer, so it is in steady-state accretion and in a constant state of outburst. It emits most of its light in the visible range, and this comes from the accretion disk. The eclipse depth is 1.8 mag. No description of the donor star is made.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 1276</span> Double star in the constellation Perseus

NGC 1276 is an optical double star system located in the constellation Perseus. The system was discovered by astronomer John Dreyer on December 12, 1876. The pair consists of two 15th magnitude stars known as Pul -3 270349 and Pul -3 270357 that are unrelated as they lie at different distances from each other. Pul -3 270349 lies at a distance of 1,134.5587 parsecs (3,700.436 ly) and Pul -3 270357 lies at a distance of 1,774.6229 parsecs (5,788.046 ly).

References

  1. https://astrogen.aas.org/front/searchdetails.php?agnumber=8069
  2. "Curriculum vitae" (PDF). Leiden University.
  3. "Nature's 10". www.nature.com. Retrieved 2019-12-20.
  4. "Anthony Brown - Leiden University". University of Leiden. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  5. "Anthony Brown". ESA. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  6. Gaia Collaboration; Brown, A. G. A.; Vallenari, A.; Prusti, T.; de Bruijne, J. H.J.; Mignard, F.; Drimmel, R.; Babusiaux, C.; Bailer-Jones, C. A.L.; Bastian, U.; Biermann, M. (November 2016). "Gaia Data Release 1: Summary of the astrometric, photometric, and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 595: A2. arXiv: 1609.04172 . Bibcode:2016A&A...595A...2G. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201629512 . ISSN   0004-6361.
  7. Brown, A. G. A.; Vallenari, A.; Prusti, T.; Bruijne, J. H. J. de; Babusiaux, C.; Bailer-Jones, C. a. L.; Biermann, M.; Evans, D. W.; Eyer, L.; Jansen, F.; Jordi, C. (2018-08-01). "Gaia Data Release 2 - Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 616: A1. arXiv: 1804.09365 . Bibcode:2018A&A...616A...1G. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201833051 . ISSN   0004-6361.
  8. "Anthony Brown gives prestigious lecture series in Princeton - Leiden University". Leiden University. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  9. "Spitzer Lectures 2019". Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University. Retrieved 19 December 2019.