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Kepler Input Catalog

Kepler Input Catalog is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Kepler Input Catalog rather than just read about it. In short: The Kepler Input Catalog (or KIC) is a publicly searchable database of roughly 13.2 million targets used for the Kepler Spectral Classification Program (SCP) and the Kepler space telescope. Overview The Kepler SCP targets were observed by the 2MASS project as well as Sloan filters, such as the griz filters.

Kepler Input Catalog — main illustration
Kepler Input Catalog — illustration

Key takeaways

  • Kepler Input Catalog belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Kepler Input Catalog to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Kepler Input Catalog from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Kepler Input Catalog (or KIC) is a publicly searchable database of roughly 13.2 million targets used for the Kepler Spectral Classification Program (SCP) and the Kepler space telescope.

Overview The Kepler SCP targets were observed by the 2MASS project as well as Sloan filters, such as the griz filters. The catalog alone is not used for finding Kepler targets, because only a portion (about 1/3 of the catalog) can be observed by the spacecraft. The full catalog includes up to 21 magnitude, giving 13.2 million targets, but of these only about 6.5 to 4.5 million fall on Kepler's sensors. KIC is one of the few comprehensive star catalogs for a spacecraft's field of view. The KIC was created because no catalog of sufficient depth and information existed for target selection at that time. The catalog includes "mass, radius, effective temperature, log (g), metallicity, and reddening extinction". An example of a KIC catalog entry is KIC #10227020. Having had transit signals detected for this star, it has become a Kepler Object of Interest, with the designation KOI-730. The planets around the star are confirmed, so the star has the Kepler catalog designation Kepler-223. Not all star Kepler Input Catalog stars with confirmed planets get a Kepler Object of Interest designation. The reason is that sometimes transit signals are detected by observations that were not made by the Kepler team. An example of one of these objects is Kepler-78b.

Notable objects KIC 8462852 is a binary star whose primary shows a mysterious transit profile. The origin of this profile is uncertain, with proposed explanations ranging from an uneven dust ring to a Dyson swarm or similar alien megastructure. KIC 9832227 is a contact binary and an eclipsing binary with a period of about 11 hours. KIC 11026764 is a G-type subgiant star whose asteroseismology has been studied extensively by Kepler. It shows weak variability with a period of about 1100 seconds. KIC 9246715 is an eclipsing binary system consisting of two red giants. The primary component of the system has a radius of 8.37+0.03−0.07 R☉ a mass of 2.171+0.006−0.008 M☉, and a temperature of 4930+140−230 K, while the secondary component has a radius of 8.3+0.04−0.03 R☉, a mass of 2.149+0.006−0.008 M☉ and the same temperature. Both stars orbit each other at a distance of 294,000,000 km (1.97 astronomical units), completing one orbit every 171 days. KIC 11145123 is one of the more interesting non-KOI objects in the list. An A-type main-sequence star with unusually slow rotation for its high mass, it is currently believed to be the roundest natural object.

See also Kepler object of interest (KOI) Hubble Guide Star Catalog Tabby's Star

References

External links Kepler Input Catalog (SAO)

Illustrations

Kepler Input Catalog: This image from NASA's Kepler mission shows the telescope's full field of view -- an expansive star-rich patch of sky in the constellations Cygnus, Lyra and Draco stretching across 100 square degrees, or the equivalent of two side-by-side dips of the Big Dipper. A cluster of stars, called NGC 6791, and a star with a known planet, called TrES-2b, are outlined. The cluster is eight billion years old, and located 13,000 light-years from Earth. It is called an open cluster because its stars are loosely bound and have started to spread out. TrES-2b is a hot Jupiter-like planet known to cross in front of, or transit, its star every 2.5 days. Kepler will hunt for transiting planets that are as small as Earth. Celestial north is towards the lower left corner.[1]
This image from NASA's Kepler mission shows the telescope's full field of view -- an expansive star-rich patch of sky in the constellations Cygnus, Lyra and Draco stretching across 100 square degrees, or the equivalent of two side-by-side dips of the Big Dipper. A cluster of stars, called NGC 6791, and a star with a known planet, called TrES-2b, are outlined. The cluster is eight billion years old, and located 13,000 light-years from Earth. It is called an open cluster because its stars are loosely bound and have started to spread out. TrES-2b is a hot Jupiter-like planet known to cross in front of, or transit, its star every 2.5 days. Kepler will hunt for transiting planets that are as small as Earth. Celestial north is towards the lower left corner.[1]

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Kepler Input Catalog

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Kepler Input Catalog claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Kepler Input Catalog before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Kepler Input Catalog ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Kepler Input Catalog

In research
Kepler Input Catalog appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Kepler Input Catalog in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Kepler Input Catalog is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Astronomical catalogues of stars, Kepler space telescope, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Kepler Input Catalog outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Kepler Input Catalog in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Kepler Input Catalog means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Kepler Input Catalog out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kepler Input Catalog in simple terms?

The Kepler Input Catalog (or KIC) is a publicly searchable database of roughly 13.2 million targets used for the Kepler Spectral Classification Program (SCP) and the Kepler space telescope. Overview The Kepler SCP targets were observed by the 2MASS project as well as Sloan filters, such as the griz…

Why does Kepler Input Catalog matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Kepler Input Catalog?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Kepler Input Catalog.

Tags

  • Astronomical catalogues of stars
  • Kepler space telescope

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