Developing new technologies for the study of stars and planets, their origins and fates
Welcome to the Monnier Research Universe
Whether you are a student, researcher, or member of the public
I invite you to explore my site and engage with me through email or social media.
Projects
Advances in detectors, optics, and photonics have fueled progress in the field of Optical Interferometry, allowing stars and their surroundings to be probed with unprecedented spatial resolution. Research in my group is focused on visible and infrared imaging with milliarcsecond resolution, developing the precision-calibration techniques necessary to directly detect extra-solar planets, and building the novel instrumentation to make these experiments possible. We are working with aerospace engineers to translate the success of ground-based interferometry into formation-flying telescopes in space.
Beta Lyrae: We are making movies of interacting binaries and more with MIRC-X and MYSTIC.
The European Extremely Large Telescope (E-ELT): As a partner with first-generation instrument teams in Europe, Prof. Monnier is working on the METIS Science Team to develop science cases for young stars and young planets.
STARI: Our recently funded two-cubesat project will be a technology milestone making a formation-flying space interferometer more feasible than ever.
Drones: Heavy-lift drones could be used for astronomy, lifting small telescopes above the ground-layer and potentially allowing long-baseline interferometry.
Search for Hot Jupiters: Through precision calibration and long-baseline interferometry, we are pushing precision methods to detect hot Jupiters near their host stars.
MIRCX-POL: We are starting new projects to combine near-infrared interferometry with linear polarimetry, the first time with milli-arcsecond resolution.
Team
I work with brilliant folks. Check out their websites!
Linling Shuai: 2nd year Graduate student working on first long-baseline polarization imaging with CHARA/MIRCX.
Noura Ibrahim: Imaging planet-forming disks with CHARA/MIRC-X and CHARA/MYSTIC.
Rachael Roettenbacher: 51 Peg b Fellow and University of Michigan Research Scientist imaging stellar surfaces to understand stellar magnetism and better find exoplanets.
Publications
You can find a few of my recent publications below, along with some 'classics.' Clicking on an image will take you to a new webpage.
Review: Advances in Optical/Infrared Interferometry
Imaging the Famous Star Altair
Zooming in on Young Hot Star
v1295 Aql
On the Interferometric Sizes of Young Stellar Objects
Planet Formation in Action
around HD 34700A
All Refereed Publications
About Me
John Monnier obtained his Physics BS degree from Purdue University in 1993, followed by his Physics PhD from the University of California at Berkeley under the supervision of Charles H. Townes and William Danchi. Following a Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Fellowship, Dr. Monnier began an assistant professor position at the University of Michigan in 2002. Professor Monnier's group has been responsible for development of the Michigan InfraRed Combiner (MIRC) and Michigan Young STellar Imager at CHARA (MYSTIC), the first instruments capable of infrared imaging of complex objects using long-baseline interferometry. Professor Monnier is interested in all stages of stellar and planetary evolution, with a focus on imaging surfaces of stars and planet-forming disks along with development of new methods for extrasolar planet detection and characterization. Professor Monnier received the 2019 AAS Joseph Weber Award for Astronomical Instrumentation and was named an AAS Legacy Fellow in the inaugural 2020 class.
Contact
You can reach me at my official university email monnier@umich.edu or at Bluesky AstroMonnier