The Arecibo Remote Command Center (ARCC) is an integrated research and education environment model that gets students from the high school, undergraduate, and graduate student levels working together in teams to explore the galaxy.
At Swarthmore we have a team of undergraduate students (known as ‘SwARCCies’) who sift through radio telescope data looking for pulsars (rapidly spinning stars). The new pulsars may then be used to assemble a ‘galactic sized’ gravitational wave detector. Using this detector we gain a window into the gravitational wave universe which allows us to see the merger of supermassive (hundreds of millions times the mass of the sun) black holes that live at the centers of galaxies.
SwARCCies also participate in biweekly meetings where we talk about the science of pulsars, gravitational waves, supermassive blackholes, and any other astrophysical topics we find interesting. We also have a monthly meeting of all of the ARCC sites where students and faculty from over six different institutions meet to talk about science.
If you are interested in being a SwARCCie email Tristan.