May 25, 2013
Mandy Walker-LaFollette
My name is Amanda Walker-LaFollette. I am a Junior Astronomy and Physics double-major, with a minor in Planetary Science. I am the current president of the University of Arizona Astronomy Club, and a student operator of the Raymond E. White Jr. Reflector (21 inch telescope).
Mandy with the 2012 AAS TrES-3b poster
I am a UA/NASA Spacegrant intern advisor with Dr. Yancy Shirley doing Radio Astronomy research on the early-stage star formation in the Perseus and Serpens molecular clouds. I am also involved in the University of Arizona Astronomy Club Exoplanet Project researching transiting hot Jupiters TrES-3b and TrES-4b, and hav presented some of this research at the American Astronomical Society 2012 winter meeting in Austin, Texas. During the summer of 2012 I participated in an REU at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, doing research on star formation at the Galactic center using 44GHz Methanol Masers
Besides astronomy, I enjoy sports like soccer, frisbee, biking, and hiking. I also enjoy playing, teaching, and performing marimba and mbira, musical instruments from Zimbabwe.
Gallery
NASA Image of the Day
The Engine Burns Blue
This image shows a cutting-edge solar-electric propulsion thruster in development at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., that uses xenon ions for propulsion. An earlier version of this solar-electric propulsion engine has been flying on NASA's Dawn mission to the asteroid belt. This engine is being considered as part of the Asteroid Initiative, a proposal to robotically capture a small near-Earth asteroid and redirect it safely to a stable orbit in the Earth-moon system where astronauts can visit and explore it. This image was taken through a porthole in a vacuum chamber at JPL where the ion engine is being tested. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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This image shows a cutting-edge solar-electric propulsion thruster in development at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., that uses xenon ions for propulsion. An earlier version of this solar-electric propulsion engine has been flying on NASA's Dawn mission to the asteroid belt. This engine is being considered as part of the Asteroid Initiative, a proposal to robotically capture a small near-Earth asteroid and redirect it safely to a stable orbit in the Earth-moon system where astronauts can visit and explore it. This image was taken through a porthole in a vacuum chamber at JPL where the ion engine is being tested. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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