EP 43 · 26:00

Scientific decision-making at SDSS-IV

From Dr. Michael Blanton on Open Data, Galaxy Surveys, and the Future of Astronomy

Episode
11/16
Watch Dr. Michael Blanton on Open Data, Galaxy Surveys, and the Future of Astronomy
In this chapter

Krishna asks Michael Blanton for a concrete example of a scientific decision he had to personally make and stand behind, using SDSS-IV as the setting. Blanton begins describing how SDSS-IV ran two survey programs competing for dark time, the period when the moon is new and the sky is darkest, starting with the MaNGA program (Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory). The chapter ends before Blanton explains what the actual decision was or how he made it.

Transcript

236 words · auto-generated from the episode video

26:03>> Yeah. >> Right? So, could you give an example of like a scientific decision that that you, you know, it was the buck stops with you and you had to make that decision? And what what what were the things that you weighed when making that decision? >> So, um I think there >> And it doesn't have to be from SDSS. If anyone here >> Yeah, I I think SDSS probably has has the examples I could most easily talk about. You know, I I I think there is I Just tell me if this is too far in the weeds, but you

26:44>> We love the weeds on this podcast. >> the weeds. Good. So, in SDSS-IV, we had two programs that were using what we call the dark time, which is when the the moon is is is new. >> Oh, okay. So, on the other side of the earth. >> Well, it's on Yeah, it's on uh it's it's on the >> the day side >> the sun, right? So, it's it's when the sky is dark. Right? So, so, one one was called Manga, which is another naming uh Yeah, it's spelled anime. Yeah, spelled the same way. Makes it hard to >> What was the What was the full form? >> Uh the mapping nearby galaxies at Apache Point

27:25Observatory. >> Okay. >> Yeah. >> That's Yeah, that's okay.

From the episode
  1. EP 43

    Dr. Michael Blanton on Open Data, Galaxy Surveys, and the Future of Astronomy

    Dr. Michael Blanton joins us to talk SDSS, open data, Rubin, Carnegie, and the mystery of why the universe’s biggest galaxies stop forming stars.

    Dr. Michael Blanton on Open Data, Galaxy Surveys, and the Future of Astronomy

AstronomyAstrophysicsOpen DataCosmology