Honors Research Projects
Listed here are the Honors research projects completed by Astronomy undergraduates over the years. Most of their projects were coordinated through the resources presented at UMD Astronomy: Undergraduate Research.
| TITLE | STUDENT | ADVISOR(S) | YEAR |
| Turbulent Motion in Molecular Cores: Perseus B1, L1451, L1455 | Maureen Clark | Lee Mundy | 2024 |
| Qualifying High Extinction Levels in Molecular Clouds by the Introduction of Spitzer IRAC Data | Nicholas Gobs | Tracy Huard and Lee Mundy | 2024 |
| Examining Self-Consistent Hot Jupiter Emission Spectra Models With and Without Aerosols | Madeline Lessard | Eliza Kempton | 2024 |
| Using the JWST NIRCam and MIRI Imagers to Constrain Dust Properties in Star-Forming Galaxies | Steven Shockley | Sylvain Veilleux | 2024 |
| Investigating Tropical Cyclones on TRAPPIST-1e: Dependence on Atmospheric CO2 | Cole Smith | Tad Komacek | 2024 |
| Star-Forming Regions and Young Stellar Objects within Dark Molecular Cloud L723 | Lacey Allee-Press | Lee Mundy | 2023 |
| The Kinematic and Dynamical Propertices of HBC 494's Wide-Angle Outflows | Austen Fourkas | Lee Mundy | 2023 |
| Star Cluster Formation and Survival in the First Galaxies | Fred Garcia | Massimo Ricotti | 2023 |
| The Coupled Impacts of Atmospheric Composition and Obliquity on the Climate Dynamics of TRAPPIST-1e | Tobi Hammond | Tad Komacek | 2023 |
| Bimodal Star Formation in Simulations of Strongly Magnetized Giant Molecular Clouds | Ronan Hix | Massimo Ricotti | 2023 |
| Dust Extinction in the Cosmic Cliffs: Insights from Early-Release JWST Observations | Shreya Karthikeyan | Tracy Huard and Lee Mundy | 2023 |
| Towards Globular Cluster Formation Channel Constraints from Tidal Disruptions by Intermediate-Mass Black Holes | Nicholas Magnelli | Cole Miller | 2023 |
| A Relationship between Extinction and Far-Infrared Optical Depth in Molecular Clouds | Rachel Weller | Lee Mundy | 2023 |
| Analysis of Assumptions and Calculations Relevant to Binary Black Holes in AGN Accretion Disks | Kate Futrowsky | Cole Miller | 2022 |
| Eight Outbursting Event of Comet 7P/Pons-Winnecke | Ky Hyunh | Michael Kelley, Jessica Sunshine | 2022 |
| Climatological Effects on Transit Spectroscopic Measurements of TRAPPIST-13 | Yoav Rotman | Thaddeus Komacek | 2022 |
| Characterizing HII Regions of the Small Magellanic Cloud | Daniel Stapleton | Elizabeth Tarantino, Alberto Bolatto | 2022 |
| Analyzing Two SEP Events Using Proton Flux Data from STEREO A/B, SOHO, and SolO | Lucy Wilkerson | Surja Sharma | 2022 |
| Finding the Masses of Molecular Clouds Using Herschel Emission Data | Lea Feuillet | Lee Mundy | 2021 |
| Ghostly Halos: The Need to Look Deeper | Kathleen Hamilton-Campos | Massimo Ricotti | 2021 |
| Simulating the propagation speed of a seismic signal through a granular medium | Katie Hancock | Derek Richardson | 2021 |
| Joint Parameter Inference Derivation from Segmented Inference from Galactic Binary LISA Data Analysis | Benjamin Johanson | John Baker, Cole Miller | 2021 |
| Polarimetric Analysis of Comets 2I/Borisov and C/2011 KP36 (Spacewatch) | Renee Kirk | Ludmilla Kolokolova, Jessica Sunshine | 2021 |
| A Novel Comb Filter for Type Ia and IIp Supernovae Photometric Redshift Estimations | Scott Martin | Drake Deming | 2021 |
| Exploring the Formation of Primordial Black Holes Using the Fast Fourier Transform and Two Point Correlation Function | Valentina Petroni | Massimo Ricotti | 2021 |
| Microphysics of Localized Structures in the Magnetosphere from Multispacecraft MMS Data | Elizabeth Wraback | Jason Shuster, Surja Sharma | 2021 |
| The Detectability of Plausible Atmospheric and Surface Compositions of LHS 3884b with JWST | Emily Whittaker | Malik Matej, Eliza Kempton | 2021 |
| Multi-Method Investigation of Small-Mass Meteors Using Optical, Radar, and Spectral Observations | Emma Mirizio | Robert Michell, Derek Richardson | 2020 |
| Methodologies for Analyzing and Evaluating Models of Quasar Variability | Jacob Golomb | Cole Miller | 2020 |
| Signatures of Clouds in Hot Jupiter Atmospheres: Modeled High Resolution Emission Spectra from 3D General Circulation Models | Caleb Harada | Eliza Kempton | 2020 |
| Investigations into Blazar Flare Mechanics | Claire Hinrichs | Richard Mushotzky | 2020 |
| Calibration and Data Simulation for RIMAS, the Rapid Infrared Imager-Spectrometer | Jillian Kunze | Alexander Kutyrev, Sylvain Veilleux | 2020 |
| Exploring Spatial and Temporal changes in Hydration on the Lunar South Pole | Kristen Laferriere | Lori Feaga, Jessica Sunshine | 2020 |
| Probing Hot Jupiter Temperatures with TESS Photometry | Ryan Morris | Drake Deming | 2020 |
| Cross-Dispersion System for an Integrated Photonic Spectrograph | Meghna Sitaram | Sylvain Veilleux | 2020 |
| Developing a New Software Pipeline to Spectroscopically Classify BCUs | Ryan Skoletsky | Roopesh Ojha, Richard Mushotzky | 2020 |
| Using Granular Dynamics Simulations with Cohesion to Create Fluffy Regolith | Matthew Wilkin | Derek Richardson | 2020 |
| K2 and Spitzer Transits of Four Super-Earth Exoplanets | Alison Duck | Drake Deming | 2019 |
| Dust Abundances in Molecular Clouds | Benjamin Flaggs | Tracy Huard, Lee Mundy | 2019 |
| K2 Legacy Data: Killing Planet Candidates with EVEREST and Searching for Candidates with Halo Photometry | Michael Greklek-McKeon | Drake Deming | 2019 |
| A New Method of Fitting Extinction Toward Molecular Clouds | Kevin Hall | Lee Mundy | 2019 |
| Search for Orbital Decay in WASP-126b and WASP-18b | Justin Harrell | Drake Deming | 2019 |
| Ionization Mechanisms in Quasar Outflows | Jason Hinkle | Sylvain Veilleux | 2019 |
| Mapping Water-Ice and Silicates Using Broadband Photometry of Background Stars | Melanie Rowland | Tracy Huard, Lee Mundy | 2019 |
| Exploring Star Formation in Five Compact Cores | Emma Schwartzman | Lee Mundy, Isabelle Joncour | 2019 |
| Distribution of Exoplanet Radii Determined from TESS Data | Edward Williams | Drake Deming | 2019 |
| Tidal Stresses in the 2029 Close Encounter with Earth of Proposed APEX Mission Target 99942 Apophis | Joseph DeMartini | Derek Richardson | 2018 |
| Removing Terrestrial Alteration from Meteorite Sample GRA 06128/9 Via Chemical Leaching | Anna Engle | Jessica Sunshine | 2018 |
| Assessing the Quality of Grid-Based Gravitational Fields | Mark Hubbert | Doug Hamilton | 2018 |
| Effects of Anisotropic Viscosity on the Evolution of AGN Bubbles in Galaxy Clusters | Matthew Kingsland | Karen Yang, Richard Mushotzky | 2018 |
| Asteroids Under Stress: Constraining Strength and Evolution Through Spin-Up Simulations | Andrew Leisner | Derek Richardson | 2018 |
| Exploring Shear-free Ringlet Formation with Direction Simulations of Saturn's A and B Rings | Yuxi (Lucy) Lu | Derek Richardson | 2018 |
| Finding Escaper YSOs in the Serpens Cloud Complex | Roxana Popescu | Isabelle Joncour, Lee Mundy | 2018 |
| Prospects for Ground-Based Detection and Follow-Up of TESS-Discovered Planets | Matthew Varakian | Drake Deming | 2018 |
| Sky Localization, Electromagnetic Follow-up, and Cosmology for Third Generation Gravitational Wave Detectors | Shreya Anand | Leo Singer, Cole Miller | 2017 |
| Suppression of AGN-Driven Turbulence by Magnetic Fields in a Magnetohydrodynamic Model of the Intracluster Medium | Christopher Bambic | Cole Miller, Chris Reynolds | 2017 |
| Characterizing Hot Jupiters with Secondary Eclipses: A Statistical Study Using Pixel-Level Decorrelation | Emily Garhart | Drake Deming | 2017 |
| Primordial Black Holes as Dark Matter Candidates: A Numerical Model of Primordial Black Hole Binary Formation and Evolution | Victor Meszaros | Massimo Ricotti | 2017 |
| Heating in Intracluster Gas via Gravity Waves | Xiao (Jennifer) Liang | Chris Reynolds | 2016 |
| Confirming Variability in the Secondary Eclipse Depth of the Super-Earth 55 Cnc e | Patrick Tamburo | Drake Deming | 2016 |
| Library of Tools for Manipulating 3-D Grids Including the Production of Numerically Determined Gravitational Fields | Harry Arnold | Doug Hamilton | 2015 |
| Tracing Exotic Photon Trajectories around Black Holes | Allison Bostrom | Cole Miller, Chris Reynolds | 2015 |
| Tracing Dense Gas in NGC 1333 | Kenneth Koester | Lee Mundy | 2015 |
| Testing and Exploration of the Rotating Neutron Star Code | Justin Tervala | Cole Miller | 2015 |
| Assessing Flat Field Quality at the University of Maryland Observatory | David Blankenship | Andrew Harris | 2014 |
| Global Variations in Lunar Highlands Composition | Lily Mannoia | Jessica Sunshine | 2014 |
| The Formation of the Kepler-36 Planetary System | Thomas Rimlinger | Doug Hamilton and Derek Richardson | 2014 |
| Characterizing Star Formation in the Perseus Cloud | Lauren Bittle | Lee Mundy | 2013 |
| Numerical Studies of Stochastically Perturbed Accretion Discs | Philip Cowperthwaite | Chris Reynolds | 2013 |
| Formation Scenarios and Evolution of the Milky Way's Old Globular Cluster Population | Harley Katz | Massimo Ricotti | 2013 |
| The Modeling and Observation of Exoplanetary Transits | Nolan Matthews | Drake Deming | 2013 |
| Neutron Star Radii: Theoretical Tests of Frequency-Dependent Light curve Analysis | Bryan Holler | Cole Miller | 2012 |
| Numerical Modeling of Rotational Fission of Contact Binary Asteroids | Brett M. Morris | Derek Richardson | 2012 |
| Modes of Two Planet Migration via Planetesimal Scattering using HNBody | James Keane | Douglas P. Hamilton | 2011 |
| Tracking Energetic Particle Trajectories in Simulations of Collisionless Magnetic Reconnection | Kalman Knizhnik | Massimo Ricotti | 2011 |
| Tilting Uranus-Toward a Collisionless Model | Lauren Woolsey | Douglas P. Hamilton | 2011 |
| Measurements of the Mass and Radius of the Neutron Star 4U 1636-53 Using Millisecond Brightness Oscillations during Thermonuclear X-ray Bursts | Ryan Abrahams | Cole Miller | 2010 |
| Mass and Radius Constraints of 4U 1728-34 | Brian Prager | Cole Miller | 2010 |
| Mass Segregation around Supermassive Black Holes | Ashley King | Cole Miller | 2009 |
| Resonant Origins for Pluto's High Inclination | Curran Muhlberger | Douglas P. Hamilton | 2008 |
| Calibration of the Baryonic Tully-Fisher Relation Using Gas Dominated Galaxies | David V. Stark | Stacy McGaugh | 2008 |
| A Chandra X-ray Study of NGC 5775 | Diana Hanson | Chris Reynolds | 2007 |
| Dynamics of Uranian Dust Sheets | Alexandra Lockwood | Douglas P. Hamilton | 2007 |
| Searching for Low Surface Brightness Galaxies | Daniel Schwartz | Stacy McGaugh | 2007 |
| Magnetorotational Instability: Theory and Experiment in Accretion Disk Dynamics | Barbara Brawn | Eve Ostriker | 2006 |
| CCD Photometry of the Globular Cluster ESO452-SC11 | Alexis Cornish | Suchitra Balachandran | 2006 |
| Numerical Experiments with Rubble Piles: Critical Breakup Densities for Oblate Spheroids | Pradeep Elankumaran | Douglas Hamilton | 2006 |
| Dust Transfer Between Earth and Mars | Paul Ries | Douglas Hamilton | 2005 |
| A Computational Study of Core Rotation in Globular Clusters | Mia Bovill | Cole Miller | 2004 |
| Optical Monitoring of Blazars MRK421 and PKS1406-076 | Jessica Ennis | Christopher Reynolds | 2004 |
| An Analytical Approach to the Distribution of Oort Cloud-Originating Comets | Jeremy Miller | Douglas Hamilton | 2004 |
| The Orbital Evolution of the Galilean Satellites | Kaveh Pahlevan | Douglas Hamilton | 2004 |
| Determination of the Density of Jupiter's Moon Amalthea | Robyn Sanderson | Douglas Hamilton | 2003 |
| Interaction of a Planar Shock Wave with Cloud Material in the Interstellar Medium | Eric Schindhelm | James Stone, Douglas Hamilton, Cole Miller | 2003 |
| Orbital Dynamics of Asteroidal Dust | Patrick Taylor | Douglas Hamilton | 2003 |
| Undergraduate Comprehension of Cosmology by Gender and Informal Education | Elizabeth Miller | Grace Deming | 2002 |
| Dynamical Evolution of the Jovian Satellite System | Amada Proctor | Douglas Hamilton | 2002 |
| A Superstar Cluster in NGC 3690 | Stacy Teng | Lee Mundy | 2002 |
| Cosmological Constraints from Rotation Curves of Low Surface Brightness Galaxies | Michael Barker | Stacy McGaugh | 2001 |
| Optical and Far-Ultraviolet Morphology of Galaxies | Melanie Freed | Sylvain Veilleux | 2001 |
| Origins of the Terrestrial Planets: Numerical Simulations to Explore Planetary Formation | Amir Caspi | Douglas Hamilton | 2000 |
| Seeking Evidence of Frame Dragging in Active Galactic Nuclei | Sheri Calvo | Wan Chen | 1999 |
| Emission Line Observations of Comet Hale-Bopp | Nathaniel Doane | Michael A'Hearn | 1999 |
| Dusty Rings around Saturn | Linda Harden | Douglas Hamilton | 1998 |
| Modeling of CO Line Emission from Circumstellar Disks | Stephanie McLaughlin | Lee Mundy | 1998 |
| An Infrared Study of Saturn's Rings during the Ring Plane Crossing of 1995 | Lori Lanier | Douglas Hamilton | 1997 |
