Keeping Time: Finding Brown Dwarfs and Pulsating Stars in Large Surveys



Abstract: The advent of large temporal surveys in astronomy have drastically

increased our ability to analyze variable stars as populations instead

of as individuals. In this talk, I will discuss my recent work on brown

dwarf (and other low-mass companions) to sun-like stars and

intrinsically pulsating stars (RR Lyrae, Cepheids, and Delta Scuti). As

part of this, I will discuss the SDSS-III MARVELS radial velocity

survey, the KELT photometric transit survey, and the upcoming TESS

satellite. Low-mass companions have proven to be difficult to study due

to their intrinsic rarity. I will discuss the ongoing analysis of

several low-mass companions in the MARVELS survey, and our initial

analysis of the population as a whole. The KELT transit survey has

recently begun publishing results on new planets and brown dwarfs. I

will discuss current efforts to use the high candence long-time baseline

lightcurves to explore properties of RR Lyrae that have engaged the

astronomical community for over 100 years. Finally, I will discuss my

recent work on creating an input catalog for the TESS survey.