Speaker
Description
The masses of astronomical systems such as star clusters, galaxies, and star cluster systems are fundamental quantities in astrophysics. For example, a robust estimate of the Milky Way Galaxy's total mass and cumulative mass profile provides insight into the size and mass of our Galaxy's dark matter halo. As another example, estimates of the mass and mass profiles of old star clusters (globular clusters) allows us to test current theories about the dynamical evolution of these systems in the context of the Milky Way potential. However, estimating the masses of these systems is often a challenging statistical and computational problem because of issues such as incomplete data, selection bias, and complex models. In this talk, I will describe the latest statistical and computational methods used in my research group to estimate the mass and mass profile of the Milky Way Galaxy and globular clusters. I will also present our newest research on the relationship between globular cluster system mass and host galaxy mass using generalized linear models such as hurdle models and zero-inflated models. These novel statistical methods not only make the most of the latest space-based and ground-based telescope data, but are also uncovering new questions about the co-evolution of these systems over cosmic time.
| Keyword-1 | astrostatistics |
|---|---|
| Keyword-2 | astrophysics |
| Keyword-3 | hierarchical Bayesian |
