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 * Welcome
 * My Research
 * Bibliography
 * About Me
 * Professional
 * Contact Me!


DR. JACKIE CHAMPAGNE

I am a JASPER (JWST Arizona/Steward Postdoc in Early galaxies & Reionization)
Postdoctoral Scholar at Steward Observatory, University of Arizona. I work
primarily in the High-z Quasar Group with Prof. Xiaohui Fan & Dr. Feige Wang on
characterizing the cosmic environments of luminous reionization-era quasars. I
received my PhD in 2022 from the University of Texas at Austin, where I worked
with Prof. Caitlin Casey on dusty star-forming galaxies in galaxy protoclusters
at z>2.

 * learn more


MY RESEARCH

Broadly, I am interested in the processes by which large-scale structures form
and evolve along the cosmic timeline. In particular, I use major
infrared-through-radio facilities to trace galactic features (e.g., cold
molecular and atomic gas, dust emission, and starlight) in the hopes of studying
the physics behind the most highly star-forming galaxies in the Universe and how
they are shaped by their environments. I care a lot about the evolution of
galaxy protoclusters from the epoch of reionization down to cosmic noon,
particularly those that are anchored by massive systems --- radio galaxies,
active galactic nuclei (AGN) and/or highly luminous quasars.


AN INFRARED SPECTROSCOPIC VIEW OF QUASAR ENVIRONMENTS

I am a member of the ASPIRE team (A SPectroscopic Survey of biased halos In the
Reionization Era), which targets 25 z>6.5 quasars with JWST/NIRCam broadband
imaging and WFSS, ALMA Band 6 imaging and spectroscopy, and a host of other
instruments spanning X-ray to radio wavelengths. I am most interested in
characterizing overdense environments of these luminous quasars to find evidence
of star-forming protoclusters, as traced by [OIII] and [CII]. Stay tuned for
results from our ASPIRE program!


SEARCHING FOR COMPANIONS AROUND Z>6 QUASARS

My master's project built on my work with Dr. Fabian Walter at MPIA, in which we
used ALMA Band 6 observations of z=6 quasars to search for dust continuum
overdensities. Such an overdensity would suggest evidence for early clustering
around massive quasars, and these have been found with other tracers such as
[CII] and Lyman-alpha. Interestingly, we did not find a statistical overdensity
in continuum dust emission, but it's important to keep in mind that a continuum
search probes Gpc scales: a true overdensity may exist but its signal could be
washed out.

Indeed, in a followup paper we tried a complementary technique using HST to look
for Lyman break-selected galaxies -- i.e., the less extreme star-forming
galaxies than those traced by ALMA. In a subsample of three quasars, we found an
extreme overdensity around one z=6.6 quasar, a moderate overdensity very close
to a z=6 quasar whose overdensity profile is in line with those predicted for
protocluster cores, and no overdensity around a z=6.9 quasar. These works
highlight the genuine diversity of environments around quasars as well as the
limitations of photometric selections to constrain overdensities.


GALAXY PROTOCLUSTERS NEAR COALESCENCE AT Z~2.5

Are DSFGs ubiquitous in protoclusters? Do all protoclusters go through starburst
periods? Can the molecular gas trigger simultaneous starburst events in
structures several comoving Mpc across? Working with a famous knot of the COSMOS
Hyperion protocluster at z=2.5, we performed a full census of the molecular gas,
dust, and stellar content, and have drawn exciting conclusions about the
assembly of protoclusters across cosmic time. Most notably, protoclusters at
z~2.5 mark an important transitional phase just before virialization, where
extremely gas- and dust-rich galaxies begin to fall towards the dense central
core, just before we see the smoking gun X-ray signature of the intracluster
medium.


BIBLIOGRAPHY

You can find a full CV here or take a look at my ADS record.

"No Evidence for Millimeter Continuum Source Overdensities in the Environments
of z=6 Quasars," Champagne et al., 2018, ApJ, 867, 153

"Comprehensive Gas Characterization of a z=2.5 Protocluster: A Cluster Core
Caught in the Beginning of Virialization?" Champagne et al., 2021, ApJ, 913, 110

"A Mixture of LBG Overdensities in the Fields of Three z=6-7 Quasars:
Implications for the Robustness of Photometric Selection," Champagne et al.
2023, https://arxiv.org/abs/2304.10437

 * learn more


GIRL WITH THE ALMA TATTOO

I grew up in Jackson, New Jersey. I love bagels, pizza, and the Jersey Shore,
and I hate making left turns. I love getting tattoos, traveling the world, and
hanging out with my two cats, Blue and Purple.

I earned my B.S. in physics and astrophysics in 2016 from Rutgers University,
where I completed a bachelor's thesis under the advice of Prof. Chuck Keeton. As
an undergraduate, I was an NSF-REU student at Cornell University working on
gravitationally lensed submillimeter galaxies, which was my first introduction
to submillimeter observations with the SMA! I was also a research intern under
Dr. Fabian Walter at MPIA using ALMA data to search for dust continuum
overdensities around z>6 quasars. A budding interest in submillimeter
observations and dusty galaxies led me to Prof. Caitlin Casey, who eventually
supervised my doctoral thesis.

As I was learning about astronomy as a career option, what fascinated me most
was radio interferometry and how it has revolutionized what we know about the
long-wavelength Universe. To celebrate that passion, I tattooed a dish on my
arm, so feel free to call me by my self-given nickname, Girl with the ALMA
Tattoo. I guess I need a second one to make it a true interferometer, or maybe
it's time to get a JWST tat!

 * learn more


PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

I'm interested in lots of professional activities besides research! I'm
particularly passionate about making astronomy research more accessible for
undergraduates through teaching and mentoring.




PYTHON FOR BEGINNERS

Developed for the aforementioned TAURUS program, I have designed a series of
Jupyter notebooks containing step-by-step tutorials for Python beginners. The
beginning tutorials are aimed toward the first-time undergraduate unfamiliar
with basic command-line work, but it is easy to jump ahead if you are simply
looking for some Python basics. It contains instructions for the fundamental
things like syntax, array manipulation, plotting, plus astropy demonstrations
geared specifically for astronomers. We have newly added some more advanced
demos for photometry, spectroscopy, and plotting tricks. This is all available
on github.


TEACHING

In 2019 I was a team member for the ISEE Professional Development Program, for
which we developed an undergraduate inquiry activity about galaxy spectra. In
2022 I joined the Computational Research Access NEtwork (CRANE) team, an
NSF-supported and early career researcher-led mentorship and teaching program
focused on bringing Python fundamentals to physics and astronomy majors,
particularly students of color. As a graduate student I TAed for introductory
astronomy courses as well as an observational techniques class in conjunction
with McDonald Observatory, which was a lot of fun!


EQUITY & INCLUSION IN ASTRONOMY

As a woman in STEM and a global citizen in general, I am passionate about
tackling institutional biases and unfair treatment in academia. I was a member
of UT Austin's Equity and Inclusion discussion group, which has hosted
mentorship workshops, helped draft a new department Code of Conduct, and joined
up with other campus organizations to host allyship workshops. I was heavily
involved in developing seminars for TAURUS, a nine-week summer research program
designed for URM undergraduates.


ASTRONOMY ON TAP

Astronomy on Tap is an international organization hosting astronomy-themed talks
at local venues geared toward the public. Austin once boasted the most
widely-attended chapter, where I co-hosted the monthly Astronomy in the News
segment. I have given a couple talks on the magic of interferometry, available
here. I have reclaimed my title as News Anchor at Tucson Space Drafts as well,
so catch me every third Tuesday of the month!

 * still want more? talk to me!


GET IN TOUCH


 * ADDRESS
   
   steward observatory, office 304
   933 n cherry ave
   tucson, az 85721
   usa


 * EMAIL
   
   jbchampagne@arizona.edu


 * PHONE
   
   (732) 580-5134


 * SOCIAL
   
   * twitter
     
   * github
     
   * linkedin

 * © jackie champagne. all rights reserved.
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