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About OSSOS
All survey observations were acquired by the Canada France Hawaii Telescope and are stored and processed using the Canadian Advanced Network For Astronomical Research. For additional public information is available from our public web site
Refereed Journal Articles
- The Outer Solar System Origins Survey. I. Design and First-quarter Discoveries (2016) Bannister
- OSSOS. II. A Sharp Transition in the Absolute Magnitude Distribution of the Kuiper Belt’s Scattering Population (2016) Shankman
- OSSOS. III Resonant Trans-Neptunian Populations: Constraints from the first quarter of the Outer Solar System Origins Survey (2016) Volk
- OSSOS. IV. Discovery of a Dwarf Planet Candidate in the 9:2 Resonance with Neptune (2016) Bannister
- OSSOS. V. Diffusion in the Orbit of a High-perihelion Distant Solar System Object (2017) Bannister
- OSSOS. VI. Striking Biases in the Detection of Large Semimajor Axis Trans-Neptunian Objects (2017) Shankman
- OSSOS. VII. 800+ Trans-Neptunian Objects—The Complete Data Release (2018) Bannister
- OSSOS. VIII. The Transition between Two Size Distribution Slopes in the Scattering Disk (2018) Lawler
- OSSOS. IX. Two Objects in Neptune's 9:1 Resonance—Implications for Resonance Sticking in the Scattering Population (2018) Volk
- OSSOS: X. How to use a Survey Simulator: Statistical Testing of Dynamical Models Against the Real Kuiper Belt (2018) Lawler
- OSSOS. XI. No active centaurs in the Outer Solar System Origins Survey (2019) Cabral
- OSSOS. XII. Variability Studies of 65 Trans-Neptunian Objects Using the Hyper Suprime-Cam (2019) Alexandersen
- OSSOS. XIII. Fossilized Resonant Dropouts Tentatively Confirm Neptune’s Migration Was Grainy and Slow (2019) Lawler
- OSSOS. XIV. The Plane of the Kuiper Belt (2019) Van Laerhoven
- OSSOS. XV. Probing the Distant Solar System with Observed Scattering TNOs (2019) Kaib
- A dearth of small members in the Haumea family revealed by OSSOS (2020) Pike
- OSSOS. XVII. An upper limit on the number of distant planetary objects in the Solar System (2021) Ashton
- OSSOS. XVIII. Constraining Migration Models with the 2:1 Resonance Using the Outer Solar System Origins Survey (2019) Chen
- OSSOS. XIX. Testing Early Solar System Dynamical Models Using OSSOS Centaur Detections (2019) Nesvorný
- OSSOS XX: The Meaning of Kuiper Belt Colors (2020) Nesvorný
- OSSOS. XXI. Collision Probabilities in the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt (2021) Abedin
- OSSOS: The eccentricity and inclination distributions of the stable Neptunian Trojans (2021) Lin
- OSSOS. XXIII. 2013 VZ70 and the Temporary Coorbitals of the Giant Planets (2021) Alexandersen
- OSSOS Finds an Exponential Cutoff in the Size Distribution of the Cold Classical Kuiper Belt (2021) Kavelaars
- OSSOS XXV: Large Populations and Scattering-Sticking in the Distant Trans-Neptunian Resonances (2022) Crompvoets
- OSSOS. XXVI. On the Lack of Catastrophic Collisions in the Present Kuiper Belt (2022) Abedin
- OSSOS. XXVII. Population Estimates for Theoretically Stable Centaurs between Uranus and Neptune (2023) Dorsey
- The Hot Main Kuiper Belt Size Distribution from OSSOS (2023) Petit
- OSSOS. XXIX. The Population and Perihelion Distribution of the Detached Kuiper Belt
Data Releases
Collaboration
The Teams will receive the object list for each semester's discoveries as a summary table of internal designations with orbital elements and uncertainties. At release, a typical object will have a semimajor axis uncertainty of 0.1-1%. Dynamical classification using the SSBN 2008 classification will be provided. Core will also provide access to the full astrometry and the imaging data for each detection.
Some topic teams will then wish to propose observations to other telescopes for next-semester studies of the sample; this will likely be the only time when the topic teams have a proposal advantage over the world. At the time of proposal, the ephemerides of most objects will be good to +/- < 30"; the half-year-later CFHT recovery of all objects will have dropped these uncertainties to a few arcseconds by the time P.I.-led exploitation observations occur.
- Data releases (access restricted to collaboration only)
Public
We aim to submit all observations of a given semester to the MPC 6 months after the end of the semester, except for the first semester (2013), which was delayed longer. This gives observers on quarterly systems a chance to propose for telescope deadlines a cycle later with no competition. It also gives the theory teams 5 months to work before the world sees the MPC release. Recovery observations will be sent as a batch to the MPC with the same time delay.
CFHT imaging becomes public a year after the end of each semester, e.g. on August 1, 2016, the 2015A CFHT imaging becomes public to the world.
Collaboration Teams
The principle contact for each team member should be their topic team's leader.
Team leaders can contact the Core.
- Core
- CFHT image acquisition, moving object detection, orbit linkage, characterisation. (Teleconference minutes)
- - Classical Belt, structure and SDF
- H-mag distributions, dependence on class. ABSORBED INTO CORE: Petit as leader.
- Catalogs
- Objects slower than OSSOS rate cut) + non-moving object variation (eg. variable stars). Leader: L. Jones.
- Binaries
- mutual orbits, separation, colours. Leader: K. Noll.
- Cometary Activity
- Search for coma. Leader: P. Rousselot.
- Light curves
- Time variable TNOs, phase curves. Leader: M. Schwamb.
- Occultations
- Predictions, observing campaigns. Leader: W. Fraser.
- Resonant Populations
- relative populations, libration amplitude distributions. Leader: R. Murray-Clay
- Scattering
- Centaurs, Scattering Disk, Oort cloud connection. Leader: N. Kaib
- Surfaces
- Colours, NIR spectra. Leader: A. Delsanti.
SUSPENDED OR MERGED OR DEFUNCT OR INCOMPLETE
- Nearby objects
- Search for and tracking of objects moving faster than OSSOS cuts (roughly, inside 8 AU). SUSPENDED.
- Thermal Modeling
- Thermal evolution of objects. Leader: A. Guilbert ALL FUNCTIONS MERGED INTO SURFACES
- Jovian Trojans
- Proposed Leader: F. Yoshida. Work tasks and worker list never finalized. Does not yet formally exists.
How to join OSSOS
See the main OSSOS web site: http://www.ossos-survey.org/get-involved.html
Publications and Proposals
- Publications and Proposals (where team members log papers, proposals, and talks)
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS needed for OSSOS collaboration papers.
- Survey and Team logos for use in presentations etc (high-res PNGs).
- The font is (free!) Sofia Pro Light. Download it here.
Survey
Observations have concluded.
Original proposals: see the survey draft and the Accepted Proposal (access restricted to collaboration only).
Figures for presentations etc.
2013A
- April 2013 preliminary field layout plot (here for reference. As in the proposal; varied very slightly from the observed location)
- April 2013 observed plot - as the O and E fields have oppositions a month apart, the E field is shown at its 9 April moon-dark location, and the O field at its 8 May moon-dark location. The known TNOs plotted are for new moon, May 9.
- 13AE discoveries plot - all positions for 9 April 2013
2013B
- October 2013 field layout plot. The field positions and known TNO locations at October 2013 new moon (4 October).
Calibration
- Details on the original calibration methods Astrometry and Photometry
- Details on the final calibration methods Astrometry and Photometry
Timeline
- June 6/2012: OSSOS was number 1 ranked CFHT Large program. 560hr awarded.
- Jan 2013: OSSOS began observation.
- Oct 6/2013: Second OSSOS team meeting, at 2013 DPS meeting in Denver.
- June 25-27 2014: OSSOS team workshop in Beaune, France. Meeting Website
- Nov 2014: Third OSSOS team meeting, 2014 DPS in Tucson.
- Nov 2015: Fourth OSSOS team meeting, 2015 DPS in Washington DC.
- Oct 2016: Fifth OSSOS team meeting just before 2016 DPS/EPSC in Pasedena
- Jan 31/2017: End of 4-year CFHT OSSOS LP allocation
- July 2017: Sixth OSSOS team meeting in Belfast, UK.
- Dec 2017: OSSOS concluded observation.
Help
Consult the User's Guide for information on using the wiki software.