Res2405 scialog web lsst

Scialog

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Early Science with the LSST

2024-2026

Scientists have been preparing for more than a decade to analyze data from the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), which is expected to be carried out by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory starting in late 2024. This open-access dataset will be higher in volume, velocity, and complexity than any previous astrophysics experiment and could spark an extraordinary era of discovery into fundamental questions about the Universe, but capability gaps could severely limit the science that can be done. This Scialog series aims to mitigate two impediments to realizing the full scientific potential of LSST: the lack of seed funding to ignite early LSST discoveries with these data, and the critical need to create the cross-disciplinary connections required to tackle the biggest questions LSST is poised to address. This Scialog will facilitate connections between approximately 50 early career observational astronomers, cosmologists, theoretical physicists and astrophysicists, computational modelers, data scientists, and software engineers, with the goal of catalyzing collaborative projects that will advance the early science needed to make the most of a dataset enabled by one of the most powerful observational machines ever built.

Start an Application

Applications to participate in the 2026 meeting are open and will be considered until May 17, 2026.

Fellows & Facilitators

About 50 early career faculty will be invited as Fellows, ranging from their first year on faculty to recently post-tenure. Around 10 senior scientists will act as Facilitators to outline major questions, guide discussions, and assess proposals.

Fellows
Facilitators
  • Fred Adams
    University of Michigan

    Eric Bellm
    University of Washington and LSST

    Rebecca Bernstein
    Giant Magellan Telescope

    Lars Bildsten
    Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics

    Jackie Faherty
    American Museum of Natural History

    Xiaohui Fan
    University of Arizona

    David Hogg
    New York University and Flatiron Institute

    Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz
    University of California, Santa Cruz

    Jeno Sokoloski
    Columbia University and LSST Discovery Alliance

    Beth Willman
    LSST Discovery Alliance

Team Awards

Goal: to advance the foundational science needed to realize the full potential of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s upcoming Legacy Survey of Space and Time.

2024 Team Awards

IMBH in the LMC? A Hypervelocity Star Survey with LSST

  • Wenbin Lu
    Astronomy
    University of California, Berkeley
  • Ana Bonaca
    Carnegie Observatories
    Carnegie Institution for Science
  • Kareem El-Badry
    Astronomy
    California Institute of Technology

Not So Heavy Metal: An Enhanced Rate of SLSNe at Cosmic Noon

  • Allison Strom
    Physics and Astronomy
    Northwestern University
  • Ben Margalit
    Physics and Astronomy
    University of Minnesota Twin Cities
  • Adam Miller
    Physics and Astronomy
    Northwestern University

White Dwarf Companions as Brown Dwarf Chronometers

  • Kareem El-Badry
    Astronomy
    California Institute of Technology
  • Caroline Morley
    Astronomy
    University of Texas at Austin

Rubin LSST as a Multi-Wavelength Discovery Engine for Relativistic Transients

  • Igor Andreoni
    Physics and Astronomy
    University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • Tanmoy Laskar
    Physics & Astronomy
    University of Utah
  • Mathew Madhavacheril
    Physics and Astronomy
    University of Pennsylvania

A Unified Model of Stellar Systems in LSST-Y1 for Dark Matter Inference

  • Alexander Ji
    Astronomy & Astrophysics
    University of Chicago
  • Vera Gluscevic
    Physics and Astronomy
    University of Southern California

Multimessenger Transients in AGN Disks

  • Anna Ho
    Astronomy
    Cornell University
  • Maya Fishbach
    Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics
    University of Toronto
  • Elisabeth Newton
    Physics and Astronomy
    Dartmouth College

Dwarf Debris and Dark Matter: Searching for Evidence of Hierarchical Formation in the Stellar Halos of Dwarf Galaxies

  • Charlotte Christensen
    Physics
    Grinnell College
  • Nora Shipp
    Astronomy
    University of Washington
  • Burçin Mutlu-Pakdil
    Physics and Astronomy, Dartmouth College

Towards a Census of Dual AGN Across Cosmic Time

  • Krista Smith
    Physics and Astronomy
    Texas A&M University
  • Adi Foord
    Physics
    University of Maryland, Baltimore County
2025 Team Awards

Chasing the First Explosions from BH* with LSST 

  • Carl Fields 
    Astronomy 
    University of Arizona 
  • Wenbin Lu 
    Astronomy 
    University of California, Berkeley 
  • Feige Wang 
    Astronomy 
    University of Michigan 

Democracy Now: Accessible and Rapid Alerts for the Astronomical Community 

  • Michael Coughlin 
    Physics and Astronomy 
    University of Minnesota Twin Cities 
  • Mathew Madhavacheril 
    Physics and Astronomy 
    University of Pennsylvania 
  • Rebecca Phillipson 
    Physics 
    Villanova University 

First Light in the Void 

  • Charlotte Christensen 
    Physics 
    Grinnell College 
  • Mithi Alexa de los Reyes 
    Physics and Astronomy 
    Amherst College 
  • Kristen McQuinn 
    Physics and Astronomy 
    Rutgers University – New Brunswick 

Tiny Galaxies, Big Waves: Discovering the First Dwarf Binary AGN Using Early Rubin Data 

  • Mithi Alexa de los Reyes 
    Physics and Astronomy
    Amherst College 
  • Antonella Palmese 
    Physics 
    Carnegie Mellon University   
  • V. Ashley Villar 
    Astronomy 
    Harvard University 

Measuring Metallicities of RRLs in the Milky Way Vicinity 

  • Nina Hernitschek 
    CITEVA – Centro de Astronomía 
    Universidad de Antofagasta, Chile 
  • Ting Li 
    Astronomy & Astrophysics 
    University of Toronto 

The Impact of the 12C(a,g)16O Reaction Rate on LSST White Dwarfs 

  • JJ Hermes  
    Astronomy 
    Boston University 
  • Erika Holmbeck 
    Nuclear and Chemical Sciences 
    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory  
  • Carl Rodriguez
    Physics and Astronomy 
    University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Unveiling High-Redshift Tidal Disruption Events in Rubin LSST Data 

  • Kate Alexander 
    Astronomy 
    University of Arizona 
  • Igor Andreoni 
    Physics and Astronomy 
    University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Next Meeting

November 12 – 15, 2026

Location

Loews Ventana Canyon Resort
Tucson, Arizona

Lead Program Director

Richard Wiener

Administrative Contact

Meg Martin

Conference Booklets

2024 Scialog LSST Conference Booklet

2025 Scialog LSST Conference Booklet

SPONSORS

Heising simons foundation
Research corporation for science advancement logo

Additional Support

Leinweber Foundation
Kevin Wells