I am a Research Fellow in the Astronomy and Astrophysics group at the University of Warwick working in the Centre for Space Domain Awareness (CSDALink opens in a new window).

In this work I am involved in developing a GPU-assisted pipeline to detect satellites and debris in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). This work uses a method called blind stacking which detects moving objects in a series of stationary frames. The method involves testing multiple potential paths between frames and keeping only the best pixels. See the below animation for a visual description of the method.

I completed my PhD here at Warwick under the supervision of Prof. Don Pollacco, looking at the simulation, detection and characterisation of monotransits from the TESS mission (ThesisLink opens in a new window).

Publications

First author (selected papers, most recent first)

• Simulated recovery of LEO objects using sCMOS blind stacking - Benjamin F. Cooke, Paul Chote, Don Pollacco et al. (ASR 2023Link opens in a new window)

• Resolving period aliases for TESS monotransits recovered during the extended mission - Benjamin F. Cooke, Don Pollacco, David R. Anderson et al. (MNRAS 2021Link opens in a new window)

• SpecPhot: A Comparison of Spectroscopic and Photometric Exoplanet Follow-Up Methods - Benjamin F. Cooke and Don Pollacco (MNRAS 2020Link opens in a new window)

• Two transiting hot Jupiters from the WASP survey: WASP-150b and WASP-176b - Benjamin F. Cooke, Don Pollacco, Y. Almleaky et al. (AJ 2020Link opens in a new window)

• An examination of the effect of the TESS extended mission on southern hemisphere monotransits - Benjamin F. Cooke, Don Pollacco and Daniel Bayliss (A&A 2019Link opens in a new window)
• Single site observations of TESS single transit detections - Benjamin F. Cooke, Don Pollacco, Richard West et al. (A&A 2018Link opens in a new window)

Co-author (selected papers, most recent first)

• Exploring SDA Sensor Architectures for the Surveillance of Geosynchronous Spacecraft - James A. Blake, Don Pollacco, Robert Airey et al. (inc. Benjamin F. Cooke) (AMOS 2023Link opens in a new window)

• A transit timing variation observed for the long-period extremely low-density exoplanet HIP 41378 f - Edward M. Bryant Daniel Bayliss, Alexandre Santerne (inc. Benjamin F. Cooke) (MNRAS 2021Link opens in a new window)

• An Ultra-Hot Neptune in the Neptune Desert - James S. Jenkins, Matías R. Díaz, Nicolás T. Kurtovic et al. (inc. Benjamin F. Cooke) (Nature Astronomy 2020Link opens in a new window)
• NGTS-11 b (TOI-1847 b): A Transiting Warm Saturn Recovered from a TESS Single-transit Event - Samuel Gill, Peter J. Wheatley, Benjamin F. Cooke et al. (ApJ 2020Link opens in a new window)
• A remnant planetary core in the hot Neptunian desert - David J. Armstrong, Théo A. Lopez, Vardan Adibekyan et al. (inc. Benjamin F. Cooke) (Nature 2020Link opens in a new window)
• A long period (P = 61.8-d) M5V dwarf eclipsing a Sun-like star from TESS and NGTS - Samuel Gill, Benjamin F. Cooke, Daniel Bayliss et al. (MNRAS 2020Link opens in a new window)
• NGTS and WASP photometric recovery of a single-transit candidate from TESS - Samuel Gill, Daniel Bayliss, Benjamin F. Cooke et al. (MNRAS 2019Link opens in a new window)
• NGTS-4b: A sub-Neptune Transiting in the Desert - Richard G. West, Edward Gillen, Daniel Bayliss et al. (inc. Benjamin F. Cooke) (MNRAS 2019Link opens in a new window)

For a full list see NASA/ADSLink opens in a new window or ORCiDLink opens in a new window

Posters and Talks

• Monotransits in TESS - Predicted Yield and Early Results (UKEXOM19, PosterLink opens in a new window)
• NGTS Follow-up of TESS Single Transits (PLATO ESP 2019, TalkLink opens in a new window)
• LEO object detection using blind stacking (NAM 2022, TalkLink opens in a new window)

Awards

• Winton thesis prize (2022Link opens in a new window)

CV

• AcademicLink opens in a new window
• GeneralLink opens in a new window