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Curriculum Vitae

Education

  • Doctor of Philosophy: Expected graduation: May 2022

    • The University of Arizona, Department of Planetary Sciences & Lunar and Planetary Laboratory

    • Thesis Advisor: Dr. Ilaria Pascucci

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  • Master of Science: 2017 - 2019 (Planetary Science)

    • The University of Arizona, Department of Planetary Sciences & Lunar and Planetary Laboratory

    • Thesis Advisor: Dr. Ilaria Pascucci

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  • Bachelor of Science: 2013 - 2017 (Double Major in Astrophysics and Physics)

    • University of Cincinnati, OH,

    • Thesis Advisor: Dr. Michael L. Sitko

Employment / Research Experience

  • IPAC Visiting Graduate Student Fellowship, 2020

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  • Graduate Research Associate, Department of Planetary Sciences & Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, 2019 - present

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  • Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Planetary Sciences & Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, 2017 - 2019

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  • Teaching Assistant, Department of Planetary Sciences & Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, 2017 - 2019

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  • Undergraduate Research Assistant, University of Cincinnati, 2014 - 2017

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  • Women In Science and Engineering Summer REU, University of Cincinnati, 2015

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  • Teaching Assistant, Department of Physics, University of Cincinnati, OH, 2015 - 2017

Publications

  • Mulders, G. D., ….., Fernandes, R. B., 2020, AJ, under review: The Mass Budgets and Spatial Scales of Exoplanets and Protoplanetary Disks

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  • Pikhartova, M, ….., Fernandes, R. B., et al. 2020, ApJ, under review: Variability of Disk Emission in Pre-Main Sequence and related Stars. V. Occultation Events from the innermost disk region of the Herbig Ae Star HD 163296

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  • Noonan, J. W., ….., Fernandes, R. B., et al. 2019, AJ, accepted: Search for the H chondrite parent body among the Three Largest S-type Asteroids: (3) Juno, (7) Iris and (25) Phocaea

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  • Reddy, V., ….., Fernandes, R. B., et al. 2019, Icarus, 326,133-150: Near-Earth asteroid 2012 TC4 campaign: Results from global planetary defense exercise

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  • Fernandes, R. B., Mulders, G. D., Pascucci, I. et al. 2019, ApJ, 874, 81: Hints of a Turnover at the Snowline in the Giant Planet Occurrence Rate

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  • Long, Z. C., Akiyama, E., Fernandes, R. B. 2018, ApJ, 858, 112L: Differences in the gas and dust distribution in the pre-transitional disk of a sun-like young star PDS 70

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  • Pascucci, I., Mulders, G. D., Gould, A. & Fernandes, R. B. 2018, ApJ, 856L, 28P: A Universal Break in the Planet-to-Star Mass-Ration Function of Kepler MKG stars

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  • Fernandes, R. B., Long, Z. C. et al. 2018, ApJ, 856, 103F: Variability of Dust Emission in Pre-main Sequence and Related Stars. IV. Investigating the Structural Changes in the Inner Disk Regions of MWC 480

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  • Long, Z. C., Fernandes, R. B., Sitko, M.L., Wagner, K. et al. 2017, ApJ, 838, 62: The Shadow Knows: Using Shadows to Investigate the Structure of the Pretransitional Disk of HD 100453

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  • Cheng, A. F., …..., Sitko, M. L., Fernandes, R. B., et al. 2017, Icarus, 281, 404-416: Stratospheric balloon observations of comets C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring), C/2014 E2 (Jacques), and Ceres

Talk /Poster Contributions

  • “Understanding the Impact of Stripped sub-Neptune cores on EtaEarth using TESS”, Quantitative Habitability Science Workshop, Tucson, Arizona - August 2020

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  • “Unearthing the Earths: Using TESS and Kepler to Reveal the Primordial Population of Short-Period Planets”, Exoplanet Demographics, Pasadena, California - November 2020

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  • “Understanding the Impact of Stripped sub-Neptune cores on EtaEarth using TESS”, Lunar & Planetary Laboratory Conference, Tucson, Arizona - August 2020

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  • “The Frequency of Habitable Zone Earth-size Planets”, Exoplanets III, Heidelberg, Germany - July 2020

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  • “The Impact of Stellar Multiplicity on the Detection of Young Transiting Planets”, Caltech/IPAC VGF Lunch Seminar, Pasadena, California - July 2020

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  • “EPOS: The Exoplanet Population Observation Simulator”, TESS Science Conference I, Cambridge, Massachusetts, #51 - July/August 2019

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  • “Hints of a Turnover at the Snowline in the Giant Planet Distribution”, 3rd Advanced School for Exoplanetary Science: Demographics of Exoplanetary Systems, Vietri sul Mare, Salerno, Italy - May 2019

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  • “Hints of a Turnover at the Snowline in the Giant Planet Distribution”, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California - April 2019

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  • “Variability of Dust Emission in Pre-main Sequence and Related Stars. IV. Investigating the Structural Changes in the Inner Disk Regions of MWC 480”, Undergraduate Thesis Defense - May 2017

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  • “The Structure and Dynamics of Inner Regions of the Planet-building Disk around HD 31648”, 229th AAS Meeting, #345.11 - January 2017

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  • “The Structure and Dynamics of Inner Regions of the Planet-building Disk around HD 31648”, AAS Regional Meeting, Kentucky - October 2016

Professional Affiliations / Honors

  • TESS Working Group member, 2020 - present

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  • Exoplanet Program Analysis Group (ExoPAG) Science Interest Group 2 (SIG2) member, 2019 - present

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  • NASA’s Nexus for Exoplanet System Science (NExSS) Earths in Other Solar Systems (EOS) Team Member: 2017 - present

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  • American Astronomical Society, Junior Member: 2016 - present

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  • Sigma Pi Sigma (Physics Honors Society), University of Cincinnati Chapter Member: April 2016 - present

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  • President, Society of Physics Students, University of Cincinnati Chapter: 2015 - 2017

Scholarships / Awards

  • Curson Travel Award (2019)

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  • Galileo Circle Scholar Fellowship (2018, 2019)

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  • Sarah Blank Greenholz Scholarship (2016)

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  • University of Cincinnati, Department of Physics, Physics Scholarship (2015-2016) 

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  • Women In Science and Engineering (WISE) Grant (2015)

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  • International Outreach Scholarship (2013 - 2017)

Observational Experience

  • 5 night using PHARO (20'') at Palomar Observatory (PI: D. Ciardi)​

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  • 11 nights using SpeX at NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility (PIs: M. Sitko, V. Reddy, K. Hardegree-Ullman)

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  • Experience photometrically observing exoplanet transits using 14” Meade LX200 (University of Cincinnati) and RAPTORS (University of Arizona)

Undergraduate Students Mentored

  • Korash Assani, University of Cincinnati: 2016 - present

  • Dakotah B. Tyler, University of Cincinnati: 2016 - present

  • Ammar Bayyari, University of Cincinnati: 2016 - 2019

  • David Luria, University of Cincinnati: 2016 - 2017

  • Monika Pikhartova, University of Cincinnati: 2015 - 2018

Programming / Software Experience

  • Python, SQL, IDL, C++, Mathematica, LaTeX, UNIX/LINUX

Selected Community Outreach

  • Lunar and Planetary Laboratory Department Life Committee, The University of Arizona: 2019 - present

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  • College of Science Outreach Coordinator, The University of Arizona: 2019

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  • Planetary Science Education Outreach at Sahuarita Middle School, Tucson, AZ: 2019

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  • Astrobiology Education Outreach for visiting High School Students, Tucson, AZ: 2018

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  • Volunteer for University of Cincinnati Department of Physics Annual Outreach Program at the Cincinnati Observatory Center - ScopeOut: 2014 - 2017

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  • Volunteer for TechOlympics, Cincinnati: 2014 - 2017

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