Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, the home of the Dark Energy Camera. Photo: Fermilab
The Dark Energy Survey is now in its third year of capturing eye-popping images of the cosmos with its primary instrument, the Dark Energy Camera. Before the survey proper began in August 2013, however, scientists spent months testing the camera, putting it through its paces.
Now, catalogs of galaxies and stars derived from the data collected during that Science Verification season (November 2012 to February 2013) have been released to the public. Astronomers and astronomy buffs can download the data from the website for the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois, which manages the processing of all the images taken for the Dark Energy Survey.
This is good news for the astronomy community, as the catalogs released last week contain measurements of more than 25 million objects. Scientists on the Dark Energy Survey have used this data to, among other things, create the largest-yet dark matter mass map. The Science Verification data covers only 3 percent of the survey area (itself roughly one-eighth of the sky), so there is much more to come.
The Dark Energy Survey is a five-year effort to map that survey area in unprecedented detail. Scientists will use the data collected to probe the phenomenon of dark energy, the mysterious force that makes up about three-quarters of the universe. The Dark Energy Camera was built and tested at Fermilab and is mounted on the Blanco telescope at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory’s Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile.
The Dark Energy Survey is a collaboration of more than 300 scientists from 25 institutions in six countries. Funding for DES projects is provided by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science, the National Science Foundation, and other funding agencies.
Keenan Newton of the Core Computing Division supports numerous content management platforms at Fermilab. Photo: Reidar Hahn
How long have you been at Fermilab?
A little over two years.
How did you get here?
About 10 years ago, I left the Chicago area to move to Seattle, where I was working for Microsoft. After about seven or eight years out there, my family and I were starting to get homesick. The opportunity at Fermilab was presented to me and I couldn’t pass it up, and here I am. That’s pretty much it in a nutshell.
What do you do at Fermilab?
I’m responsible for the main content management platforms here at the lab. This currently includes DocDB, Indico, SharePoint and WordPress. My team and I provide support, subject matter expertise and development assistance to further enhance these content management systems to meet the lab’s needs. We also provide integration components between the various content management systems so that the lab can leverage the right tool for the right job without having to be forced into one specific platform.
What is your typical day here like?
My typical day is spent in meetings trying to help others use the right platform for their needs. I help manage various projects, removing speed bumps so the projects can run as smoothly as possible. I also work with end users and senior management to define the vision and direction of the lab’s content management systems and ensure we make the best choices for the lab.
What’s your favorite thing about working here?
Working with the people. There’s definitely a wide diversity of cultures and personalities, and it’s a great opportunity to look at things in a different light.
What do you do outside of work?
I’m a volunteer firefighter at Lynwood Fire Department, the department that I was on when I originally lived out here, before I went to Microsoft. I’ve been doing that for just about two years now, at night and on the weekends. It can be tough, but it’s rewarding when you can help people. And I’ve always been a firm believer in giving back to the community.
What’s something people might not know about you?
I like gardening. Vegetables mostly. I eat my vegetables because my parents always told me I had to. My favorite thing to grow is corn because I find it challenging from a small-garden perspective. My wife likes tomatoes, so I grow those too. Also cucumbers, zucchini. The oddest thing I have is a Meyer lemon tree growing in my living room. It’s currently only 2 feet tall, but it has six almost-ripe lemons. People are welcome to come over for lemonade.