LSU Undergraduate Leaves His Mark on the Moon
The LSU Department of Physics & Astronomy has built a team to work, research, and design the first lunar-based camera to be put on the moon. The team is led by LSU Physics and Astronomy Assistant Professors Tabetha Boyajian and Matthew Penny, and the group also consists of post-doc Jonas Kluter, PhD student Farzaneh Zohrabi and undergraduate Connor Langevin.
Connor, who is an undergraduate in the Department of Physics & Astronomy, plays an impactful role in the project’s success. His responsibility is to find out where the telescope will be pointing to view things such as stars or constellations.
CoS: When did you know you wanted to go into the sciences?
Langevin: Well, you know I always had something for astronomy. It was more of like way back when I used to watch National Geographic. I really was fascinated by things on the planet. Like the movie Blue Earth—things along those lines. Then when you realize there (are) things like that outside of our planet, like these whole other planets and moons, everywhere else in the universe, it’s like what does that even mean? You want to learn more about that sort of stuff. So, I guess ever since then I was like, maybe I want to see what this astronomy thing is.
CoS: What is it like being a part of such an impactful project as an undergraduate?
Langevin: It’s amazing, and Dr. Boyajian is the one who got me on the project in the first place; she’s awesome. The reason I mention that is because I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without her.
Before this I had been trying to get into research in the department for a while. Previously, I had done some learning assistance stuff, so basically, I just tutor physics students, and we had a big section where we’d do it four times a week. We did that until COVID happened and threw everything online. Between that I was looking for some good research opportunities, and she approached me with this one, and I literally couldn’t have been more excited to have a small impact on the big project because we probably have a good 30 or 40 people working on the project from across the country and even a few from other countries. So, my contribution of course is small but impactful for what we do.
CoS: What has the biggest challenge been during the project?
Langevin: I started the project about nine months ago, so COVID was in full swing. Therefore, a lot of our stuff has been virtual in the sense that Zoom meetings are happening, and we’d have everybody connect from across the country. We’d have to deal with the time zone issues of course, but that’s such a big dramatic shift from seeing all these people in person every week, which would be more personable but also harder to organize, and so I still see Dr. Boyajian like every week. But it’s easy to talk with people on Zoom. For example, for our weekly meetings, we would just have like a roundtable, and you’re just like, ‘What’s your progress this week?’, you know just roundtable. But for in person, that’s a little more difficult to do, but you lose that personal aspect. You don’t really get to meet these people.
CoS: What was your biggest triumph?
Langevin: Man, besides getting on the project in the first place, I'd say that’s the biggest one. But the second biggest one probably is managing to map the field of view over the entire period. Also, a lot of graphics.
CoS: How has it been working with a group that is so diverse and comes from different backgrounds?
Langevin: Oh man, it's amazing because you literally have so many different perspectives. Everybody you know has something different to say, and I’ve never had anything like it.
I’ve worked on small research projects, of course, but we were all undergraduates. But here I can work with people who have a lot of knowledge about the sciences. So, it’s great being able to talk with all these different perspectives, everybody’s got their own viewpoint from where they stand, and they are all doing different sciences. Those people are astronomy, but there’s instrumentation people there, engineers, and physicists. So, hearing everybody’s perspective gives you a whole new perspective and allows you to factor everybody’s in and go, “What’s the big picture of this whole thing?”
CoS: So, what do you want to do in the astronomy field after you graduate from LSU?
Langevin: That’ll depend on whether these grad schools accept me because it's exactly like the college application process. You apply, and you just pray to God that you get accepted, and that’s what I’m working on. So, I applied to a few, and we’ll see what happens with that. If I get accepted, I’ll probably move on to a grad school program. I applied to a few just like in Georgia, Arizona, Kansas—that sort of stuff. If I don’t, I'll probably apply again in a year and see what happens, but I’ll also start searching for jobs.
CoS: Overall, what has your experience been like in the College of Science?
Langevin: All the professors are cool, and they’ll always make time for you. Just like any department, when you first get there, you’re like, “What is going on?” and you have to get eased in slowly. The professors in astronomy are amazing, and they really help you understand the material. Dr. Boyajian is awesome, and she is always willing to help in any way she can, and for me that has been awesome.
Of course, working with other students in the department has been incredible too, although that has been very up and down because of COVID. I'd say my experience overall has been a positive one. I’ve learned so much more than I did in high school. Generally, I've been challenged a lot to get over my high school stuff, basically just learning to evolve and grow. I’d say that department has taught me a lot, made me grow as a person, and mature a lot more.
CoS: What advice do you have for students that want to break barriers in science and get that first hands-on experience?
Langevin: I’m a first-generation college student; my parents were not able to finish college. But what I am trying to do there is show that if you really put in effort and be persistent, you can do it. Ask as many people as you can. Ask around at your department’s office. Try to get to know your professors to as much as you can because a lot of them will help you out if they have the idea that you are trying.
Just don’t give up. Be persistent, and ask everybody you can to help you break barriers. That’s how I did it. If I never asked people, it never would have happened.