Sean (@seankterry) header
Sean (@seankterry) profile picture

Sean

@seankterry

Assistant Research Scientist at @UofMaryland/@NASAGoddard working on the Roman Space Telescope.

 Washington, DC
skterry.github.io
Joined June 2010
  • Tweets899
  • Following171
  • Followers192
78Media
Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)Photo by Sean (@seankterry)
This Hubble image of a microlensing event, OGLE-2013-BLG-0341, shows how astronomers can use Hubble to distinguish lensing objects from background stars, allowing them to interpret future events that will be seen by #NASARoman: news.stsci.edu/42TpwwF
A field of stars that are a mix of blue, white, and orange. A small region between the center and the right is outlined with a square box. Above it is a pullout of the outlined region, labeled “OGLE-2013-BLG-0341.” The pullout shows two fuzzy red orbs that are very close together, each of which are stars. One of the stars is labeled “lens,” while the other is labeled “background star.”

ALT A field of stars that are a mix of blue, white, and orange. A small region between the center and the right is outlined with a square box. Above it is a pullout of the outlined region, labeled “OGLE-2013-BLG-0341.” The pullout shows two fuzzy red orbs that are very close together, each of which are stars. One of the stars is labeled “lens,” while the other is labeled “background star.”

1
25
78
3,443
For Roman, from Hubble 💌 Before our next telescope teammate @NASARoman launches later this year, Hubble studied some of the same regions in our galaxy's center that Roman plans to observe.
An observation (labeled \u201CVISTA V V V Survey, Near-infrared) of the Milky Way\u2019s center pointing toward its supermassive black hole, which is labeled Sagittarius A*. At 7 o\u2019clock from center is a small region, outlined with 5 fields of view from the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope that are stacked together in a horizontal rectangle. This region is about a third of the image in length and a fifth of the image in width. Within that same region are diagonal lines that alternate between orange and blue. A legend at the bottom left shows two Hubble instruments. One of them, marked with an orange diamond, is labeled \u201CW F C 3 / U V I S.\u201D The other, marked with a blue diamond, is labeled \u201CA C S / W F C.\u201D The background is a field of stars, gas, and dust that appear gray, except the center third that runs from the left to the right of the frame, which is composed of brown filaments of dust and gas. The tiny region surrounding Sagittarius A star appears orange.

ALT An observation (labeled \u201CVISTA V V V Survey, Near-infrared) of the Milky Way\u2019s center pointing toward its supermassive black hole, which is labeled Sagittarius A*. At 7 o\u2019clock from center is a small region, outlined with 5 fields of view from the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope that are stacked together in a horizontal rectangle. This region is about a third of the image in length and a fifth of the image in width. Within that same region are diagonal lines that alternate between orange and blue. A legend at the bottom left shows two Hubble instruments. One of them, marked with an orange diamond, is labeled \u201CW F C 3 / U V I S.\u201D The other, marked with a blue diamond, is labeled \u201CA C S / W F C.\u201D The background is a field of stars, gas, and dust that appear gray, except the center third that runs from the left to the right of the frame, which is composed of brown filaments of dust and gas. The tiny region surrounding Sagittarius A star appears orange.

14
109
2
662
62,080
The "Mother of Hubble," Nancy Grace Roman, was born 100 years ago today. We take this day to remember NASA's first Chief Astronomer and her pioneering work advancing NASA's exploration of the universe. Ad astra ✨ go.nasa.gov/4deg3V1
Dr. Nancy Grace Roman, NASA's first Chief of Astronomy, at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

ALT Dr. Nancy Grace Roman, NASA's first Chief of Astronomy, at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

18
224
7
791
50,049
From final hardware arrivals to installations of the core instruments, so much is underway at @NASAGoddard. Check out these Roman hardware highlights! Stay up to date on the mission’s progress: roman.gsfc.nasa.gov/interact…
4
56
4
218
15,033
#UMD and @NASAGoddard scientists recently discovered a planetary system that may break the current record for the fastest exoplanet system, traveling at least 1.2M mph. nasa.gov/universe/nasa-scien…
NASA Scientists Spot Candidate for Speediest Exoplanet System - NASA

NASA Scientists Spot Candidate for Speediest Exoplanet System - NASA

Astronomers may have discovered a scrawny star bolting through the middle of our galaxy with a planet in tow. If confirmed, the pair sets a new record for the

nasa.gov
1
2
187
nasa.gov/universe/nasa-scien…
NASA Scientists Spot Candidate for Speediest Exoplanet System - NASA

NASA Scientists Spot Candidate for Speediest Exoplanet System - NASA

Astronomers may have discovered a scrawny star bolting through the middle of our galaxy with a planet in tow. If confirmed, the pair sets a new record for the

nasa.gov
2
111
Love is a big fat turkey and everyday is Thanksgiving.
1
55
“I always want to showcase science in a way that helps people really understand what’s going on.” Senior multimedia producer Scott Wiessinger grew up in a household where art and education were intertwined. Now, he blends the two for Roman. go.nasa.gov/4fdCrOD
The upper half of a person in a white jumpsuit with hood and surgical mask stands in front of out-of-focus metal columns and a black disk.

ALT The upper half of a person in a white jumpsuit with hood and surgical mask stands in front of out-of-focus metal columns and a black disk.

29
86
12,970
Big shout out to my collaborators (too many to name); Jean-Philippe Beaulieu, @MOA_Dave, Aparna Bhattacharya, @macyjhuston, Jon Hulberg, Naoki Koshimoto, @jlu_astro, @KVandorou
1
42
I'll emphasize the paper is still under review! Here is the pre-print version on arXiv. arxiv.org/abs/2410.09147
A Candidate High-Velocity Exoplanet System in the Galactic Bulge

A Candidate High-Velocity Exoplanet System in the Galactic Bulge

We present an analysis of adaptive optics (AO) images from the Keck-I telescope of the microlensing event MOA-2011-BLG-262. The original discovery paper by Bennett et al. 2014 reports two distinct...

arxiv.org
1
41
Right now we refer to the object as a ‘candidate’, and in order to definitively confirm the nature of the system will require more follow-up observations. The cool part is, even if this candidate signal is ruled out as the true lens, the alternative scenario is also quite exotic!
1
11
Using Gaia DR3 to establish an absolute reference frame, we calculated the transverse velocity of the lens system to be about 540 km/s, that’s nearly a hypervelocity star (HVS)!
Image from Sean (@seankterry)
1
1
15
Our team observed the event 10 years after the microlensing occurred. We directly detected what we think may be the lens system (host star) after it has separated from the background source star.
Image from Sean (@seankterry)
1
1
28
Excited to share that we may have discovered the highest velocity exoplanet system to date! The candidate signal comes from a microlensing star hosting a sub-Saturn mass planet. scientificamerican.com/artic…
Fastest Known Planetary System Might Have Been Pushed by Our Galaxy’s Supermassive Black Hole

Fastest Known Planetary System Might Have Been Pushed by Our Galaxy’s Supermassive Black Hole

This blazingly fast star is shooting through the Milky Way with a planet in tow

scientificamerican.com
1
2
82
Astronomers have discovered the fastest known solar system, moving at a rapid 541 km/s – twice the speed of our own – through the middle of the Milky Way! Story by me @SciAm scientificamerican.com/artic…
Fastest Known Planetary System Might Have Been Pushed by Our Galaxy’s Supermassive Black Hole

Fastest Known Planetary System Might Have Been Pushed by Our Galaxy’s Supermassive Black Hole

This blazingly fast star is shooting through the Milky Way with a planet in tow

scientificamerican.com
2
5
765
Milestone alert 🚨 The Roman mission is moving towards the next stage of construction, bringing all the components together! Take a look at how we got there ⬇️
5
61
10
176
35,436
In six billion years the sun will expand into a red giant, consuming Mercury, maybe Venus and potentially Earth, too. But astronomers spotted a rocky world orbiting a white dwarf, suggesting a future in which our planet outlives its star. nyti.ms/47M6iuO

The Sun Will Destroy the Earth One Day, Right? Maybe Not. (Published 2024)

Astronomers spotted a potential Earth-size rocky world orbiting a white dwarf, suggesting a future in which our planet outlives its star.

nytimes.com
39
28
14
69
115,290
Roman is getting ready to catch some rays ☀️😎 The telescope's Solar Array Sun Shield completed critical assessments, including testing in the hot and cold temperatures and low-pressure environment it will experience in space! go.nasa.gov/474yVTi
A view into a room with two flat pieces of black space hardware flanking the left and right sides of the room. Each is encased in a black frame-like structure that holds them upright. The left and right walls and the ceiling are covered in white cones that jut into the room like spikes. A worker in a head-to-toe white suit and blue gloves inspects a panel.

ALT A view into a room with two flat pieces of black space hardware flanking the left and right sides of the room. Each is encased in a black frame-like structure that holds them upright. The left and right walls and the ceiling are covered in white cones that jut into the room like spikes. A worker in a head-to-toe white suit and blue gloves inspects a panel.

3
48
2
157
10,832

No more items