The ages of astronomical objects, while not directly measurable, are of use in constructing chronologies and the key to understanding origins. The ages of cool field dwarfs, although important in a Galactic context, are especially challenging to obtain. I will present a route to the ages of such objects that is called "Gyrochronology," one based on the measured rotation periods of such stars.
Dr. Sydney A. Barnes is the Group Head of Stellar activity at Leibniz Institute of Astrophysics Potsdam, Germany. He obtained his Ph.D in Astronomy from Yale University in 1998. Over the years, he has held several academic positions in various Institutes, including Florida Institute of Technology as an assistant professor, Lowell Observatory as an assistant astronomer, and staff scientist at AIP Potsdam since 2013. He has been awarded several prizes and honors, including being elected officer at IAU, Commission B6, 2021-2024, Mercator Guest Professorship, Univ. of Potsdam & AIP, Germany, Minor Planet 28108 named Sydneybarnes, etc. He has guided several Ph. Ds and postdocs and led various international collaborations. His main research interests are the theoretical, computational, and observational investigations of the evolution of cool stars in clusters and the field, especially of stellar rotation, activity, and stellar ages.