I am a retired engineer that has an ongoing interest in space efforts. In my youth I did work on the Apollo program but on propulsion and vehicle thermal control: not flight dynamics.
I have reviewed/studied some astrodynamics (Vallado, Bates, etc) and can run GMAT and tudat libraries from Delft University. I have explored Systemic Console, tap, and other software for implying the existence of exoplanets from RV curves and light transit curves. I can download data in FITS format from various astronomical databases.
Where might I direct my efforts in some meaningful way by participating in a project, collaborating with an investigator, or pursuing some research oriented endeavour on my own? Could someone point me in a direction where I might do some meaningful work? Just picking a star and starting a transit analysis does not seem to have any probability of leading anywhere.
Those sites where one views a light transit curve or tries to classify a galaxy type are not very interesting to me. I feel I could investigate things more in depth than that.
Directions, Ideas, offers! Anyone. I will post this in Space Exploration forum also. Thanks,
Tom Kosvic