I am the instrument scientist for the High resolution Infrared Spectrograph for Exoplanet Characterization (HISPEC) project at Caltech. This project is expected to be deployed on the 10 meter Keck II telescope at the W. M. Keck Observatory in Mauna Kea, Hawaii by the end of 2026. I also work on similar instrument, MODHIS, which…

KPF has two 16Mpx CCDs for its detectors for each red and blue arm of the spectrograph. The setting of their operating points and waveforms, and their characterization was performed at Caltech. I was the lead of the analysis of the detector characterization data to ensure the detectors are ready for precise RV measurements. An…

The Keck Planet Finder (KPF) is an optical fiber-fed stabilized spectrograph at Keck with the goal of discovering and characterizing the masses of rocky exoplanets through precision radial velocity measurements (PRV). One challenge for PRV measurements is stellar activity that can introduce noise and sometimes even exoplanet-like signals. Monitoring the canonical Calcium II H&K lines…

Observations of the Sun as a star have been key to guiding models of stellar atmospheres and additionally provide useful insights on the effects of granulation and stellar activity on radial velocity measurements. Any high resolution solar spectra will contain absorption features from Earth’s atmosphere, and it can be useful to remove these telluric features…

NASA’s Planetary Spectrum Generator (PSG) is a handy tool for modeling spectra including that of our own atmosphere. With a little effort, one can swap out the line lists it uses to define the spectral absorption features making. This was convenient because I wanted to model telluric water vapor features in an effort to validate…