Hello
My name is Emily Van Cleave.
I attend the University of Wyoming as an undergraduate in Astronomy.  However for the summer of 2003,  I did research in Virginia with Dr. Grant Denn.

Here's Dr. Denn's page

My Summer Research:
"If we knew what it was we were doing, then it would not be called research, would it?"
-Albert Einstein

VLBA project BM155

Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN's) are the most energetic parts of the universe.  The energy from these black holes and Galaxies are disrupting to neighboring stars and the material that comes off the AGN is directed into two Jets shooting out from either side of the galaxy or black hole.
These jets are brightest in the Radio Band part of the electromagnetic spectrum.
As the jets approach the medium within the galaxy or black hole, the jet's shape changes into a helical structure (like cigarette smoke rising up into the air from a cigarette, it's path transverses into a helical shape).
A 15,22 and 43 GHz frequency was taken for the BL Lacertae objects, 1219+285 and 1823+568.  I have 7 sources of these BL Lacs. Every source has 3 different frequencies taken at the same time (15GHz, 22GHz and 43GHz). A core, called S10, is present at all three frequencies.  however, in the 22 and 43 GHz frequencies, there is an inner core, called S11.  These cores have changed motion over the 7 different times ranging from 1998 to 2000.  I am studying the change in motion (Kinematics) of the cores at high frequencies.  I do this through graphs, equations, and other forms and mathematical structures that I perform in Matlab.

This Graph shows my data for the seven epochs (Black) with the error bars.  Eight more epochs taken earlier from the paper by Denn, Mutel and Marscher (red), calculated by me with error bars.  And twenty-three epochs taken from A.M. Stirling et al. (green) with error bars.  The sine curve I came up with that best fits these points is...
12.3 * sin (w * t + (pi/1.5)) + 191

where w = 2*pi/T
T = the period which is approximately 2.3 years

I plotted this sine function from t = 1996 thru 2003

Through my research this summer, I am finding the Kinematics (change in motion) of the 7 "new sources" ( there were previous sources taken at earlier times), and comparing those to the earlier BL Lacs taken at high frequencies.
 
 
 

Random Thing's I Like:
During the school year, I worked at the Red Buttes Observatory in Laramie, Wyoming.  I studied Gamma Ray Bursts which was very hard because of the weather situations.  Most of the time it was cloudy or snowing.

I like punk rock a lot, one of my favorite bands is The Fairlanes.  They were one of the first shows I ever went to outside of Laramie, so I hold them dear to my heart.

However, my absolute favorite band of all times is The Cure. I won't put their webpage here because I don't like their website.  It doesn't do them any justice.
 

If you ever have trouble with science or math, just go to this webpage , it has lots of cool astronomy things and math information.  I know I use it a lot.
 

This is a picture of the team that I worked with at the University of Wyoming in the summer of 2002.  Here we are in Seattle, Washington at the 201st annual American Astronomical Society (AAS) meeting.
 Aren't we a handsome bunch?

  We worked on the M13 star cluster in the constellation, Hercules.

I am an orange belt in the Laramie Kempo Karate Club .  I can master a flying front kick and look good doing it.
 

~How the Wind Blows~
As the sun warms the Earth's surface, the sun warms the Atmosphere too. Some parts of the Earth receive direct rays from the sun and are always warm.  Other places receive indirect rays, so the climate is colder (like Laramie).  Warm air (which weighs less than cold air) rises.  Then cool air moves in and replaces the rising warm air.  This movement of air is what makes the wind blow.