Past studies of turbulence in the Interstellar Medium (ISM) have simulated turbulent sources through the Fourier space driving (FSD). These studies have demonstrated that the resulting statistical distributions of the fluid are highly sensitive to the exact driving form, highlighting a need to analyze which form reproduces which aspects of the ISM. Real observations have shown regions of expanding bubbles commonly sourced by supernovae dominate the dynamic structure. This local source of turbulence is largely different from the global scale FSD method. To find regions in the FSD method that best reproduce the statistical distributions created by expanding bubbles, we compare both distributions outputted from MHD simulations. We utilized AthenaK, to which we’ve added a momentum bubble injection method. Our results show no FSD model is able to reproduce the resulting distributions of the momentum injection method. The velocity distributions are largely different between the two methods, with the momentum injection method generating larger power in the velocity field than all tested FSD models. We did find that both the purely compressive and momentum injection methods produce density distributions that are not log-normal. The momentum injection method possibly fits the log-normal distribution well largely, only deviating in low density non- Gaussian portions.

This thesis presents the development of a high school-level astrophysical sciences course, designed as an extracurricular for students with an interest in astronomy. Since astrophysics is rarely included in standard high school curricula, this set of lesson plans stands as an extracurricular option: an accessible, noncalculus-based entry point for students from diverse academic backgrounds. Its primary aim is not necessarily to prepare for advanced study, but rather to cultivate scientific literacy and understanding of core concepts of astrophysics, cross-cutting ideas, and real-world applications. This set of lesson plans is informed by contemporary pedagogical research, with an emphasis on student-centered learning and the use of play as a mode of academic engagement.

Tidal disruption events (TDEs) are some of the brightest and most fascinating astronomical transients to behold. A passing or orbiting star may wander within the tidal radius of a supermassive black hole and be tidally ripped apart from the immense gravitational pull. Debris and remnants of the star then eventually accrete, producing brilliant flares and spectroscopic emission that can be observed. In this paper, I present a multi-epoch spectroscopic analysis of four TDEs—AT 2018hyz, AT 2018dyb, AT 2019qiz, and AT 2020zso—that aims to model the evolution of their accretion disks. My work focuses on modeling TDE emission profiles around the Hα λ6564 region at different epochs. In a small subset of TDEs, the accretion disk may emit broad, double-peaked lines that provide great insight into their properties, and these objects are the valued in my sample. The model of choice in this analysis is the axisymmetric, optically thick and geometrically thin, relativistic disk. Optimizing the parameters and understanding the accretion process unlock meaningful information about the supermassive black hole and in turn the host galaxy and its evolution throughout the universe.

Cosmological structure formation is dominated by an invisible, collisionless substance called dark matter, with a large subdominant component of baryons. Whereas dark matter only interacts gravitationally, baryons are affected by collisional, magnetic, nuclear, and relativistic processes. This makes full DM+baryon simulations exceedingly computationally expensive compared to Dark Matter Only (DMO) simulations. To fully understand structure formation without running such expensive simulations, baryonification codes are employed, modifying the output of DMO simulations to emulate baryonic effects. We present the results of a baryonification pipeline on a pair of mini-Ramses simulations, including implications for mock SZ Effect maps. We conclude, in agreement with literature, that baryonification codes are both necessary and sufficient for emulating the quantitative differences between dark matter and baryons, and comprise a promising new direction for computational cosmology.

We attempt to constrain the mass of the supermassive black hole (SMBH) in the center of the nearby late-type, quiescent, cold gas galaxy M95 (NGC 3351) using sub-millimeter CO emission line observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA). The formation and development of galaxies and the mass and growth of SMBHs are closely tied, and the effectiveness of using SMBH masses to model galaxy evolution is highly dependent on how accurate the measurements are. This makes high-resolution sub-millimeter CO observations incredibly useful to accurately estimate the SMBH mass of late-type, cold gas-rich galaxies with a quiescent nucleus (where alternative methods with tracers other than CO cannot do so). Our dataset has a beam size of 0.1'' resolution with a 2.5 km/s spectral channel width, with a low noise floor of 1.5 K. Our CO(3-2) line detections near the black hole have integrated intensities near 2,000 K km/s, making our S/N ratio in the this region very high for modelling it against background. We used KinMS (KINematic Molecular Simulation) to model the central molecular torus surrounding M95's central SMBH, and after creating two models (one with a Keplerian velocity profile component and one without) and choose the results of the model that we are most confident matches the data. From this, we determined a hard upper limit that the mass of M95's central supermassive black hole is no greater than 6.543 x 10^5 solar masses given that we estimate that there is no more than that amount of dynamical mass within 0.1'' (or about ~5 pc) of the center of M95. We also determined a (less strict) upper limit that all central Keplerian mass in the center of M95 is at most ~3 x 10^5 solar masses (which could contain objects and structures other than the SMBH). Both upper limits are smaller than we would expect given the confirmed central SMBH masses of other galaxies, which gives us an interesting result that can be used to study how M95 might evolve differently from similar galaxies with classical bulges (which M95 does not have).

Galaxies generally come in two types: star-forming spiral and quiescent (i.e. nonstar-forming) elliptical galaxies. This bimodality suggests a mechanism that quenches star formation in star-forming galaxies. Post-starburst galaxies are galaxies that have recently undergone a period of intense star formation followed by rapid quenching, allowing us to observe this transition. The central supermassive black hole of these galaxies may play a role in quenching their star formation—the black hole can grow by rapidly accreting matter, becoming an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and releasing enough energy to outshine the host galaxy. The released energy heats up and expels the surrounding gas, halting star formation in a process known as AGN feedback. We seek to find evidence of excess AGN activity in post-starburst galaxies. We analyze nine galaxies with high mid-IR luminosities from the SQuIGG⃗L E sample of post-starburst galaxies of z = 0.5 − 0.9. However, AGN and buried star formation both create strong mid-IR emission from the thermal emission of heated dust. Thus, we wish to determine whether an obscured AGN or buried star formation powers the observed mid-IR luminosity. We model the galaxies’ spectra by fitting them to optical SDSS/IR WISE data, performing one set of fits where only buried star formation contributes to the mid-IR emission and one where star formation and an obscured AGN contribute. We incorporate new data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory — AGN are strong X-ray sources and we expect to detect them unless they are heavily obscured by dust and gas. We find that some galaxies’ fits reproduce the observed mid-IR data equally well with and without an AGN, while other galaxies’ fits strongly prefer an AGN, requiring a very high star formation rate (∼ 300 M⊙/yr) without one. We do not have any significant X-ray detections, which suggests that galaxies in the former case may host buried star formation at ∼ 30 M⊙/yr. For latter galaxies, we are presented with two scenarios: extremely obscured AGNs or star formation. Future work will involve collecting higher-resolution IR data to resolve this tension.

The interior of neutron stars has been a subject of uncertainty for decades, as the interaction of supranuclear densities and relatively low temperatures is not currently replicable in terrestrial laboratories. In order to constrain the behavior of matter in such conditions, one typically turns to astrophysical observables of neutron stars, such as radius, mass, and tidal deformability. Most relevant to this thesis is the last quantity, which is inferred from the gravitational waves emitted by binary neutron star mergers. Current models of tidal interactions rely on quasi-static tidal deformations, which are only meaningfully approximate during the early part of the late inspiral. As the stars progress throughout the late inspiral stage, the tidal deformations become dynamical and nonlinear. This thesis aims to analytically model Newtonian tidal deformation contributions up to nonlinear terms. By identifying the derived dynamical corrections to the phase of the waveform, this thesis establishes a foundation for future modeling of linear and nonlinear PN contributions, ultimately aiming to help constrain the EoS of neutron stars using gravitational wave observations.

The next generation of CMB experiments will be significantly more sensitive than the current state of the art. In this work, we study the power of the upcoming Simons Observatory (SO) to place constraints on isocurvature modes of primordial perturbations, and extend the discussion to the inclusion of data from the LiteBIRD satellite. We begin with an introduction into how different types and admixtures of primordial curvature and entropy perturbations generate distinct signatures in the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). We outline two statistical methods for obtaining constraints on primordial cosmological parameters and discuss the best parameter values that have been obtained to date. We detail our procedure for constructing a set of mock power spectra from the two surveys conducted by SO, with the small and large aperture telescopes (SATs and LAT) in six frequency bands (27, 39, 93, 145, 225 and 280 GHz), and the survey conducted by the LiteBIRD satellite in fifteen frequency bands. We use these multi-frequency datasets, along with data from the Planck satellite, to construct approximate combined datasets spanning ℓ ∈ [2, 3000]. We assign the measurement with the smallest error among the four experiments to each datapoint in order to maximize sensitivity across scales and estimate their covariance; while our likelihood is not perfectly reflective of the entire inter-experiment covariance, it allows for the identification of factors that influence constraining power. We employ a Fisher forecast formalism and apply it to ten different cosmologies with different types of isocurvature, parametrized through the amplitude of the primordial isocurvature power spectrum at two scales, k1 = 0.002Mpc−1 and k2 = 0.1Mpc−1 to obtain constraints on primordial power spectrum amplitudes. We find limited improvement in constraining power on isocurvature parameters when combining only LAT data alone, but a significant improvement— of order a factor of two, on average, but as high as a factor of ten for neutrino velocity isocurvature—when including LiteBIRD, driven primarily by reduced uncertainty in measurements of the large-scale polarization, and improved constraints on the reionization optical depth.

Carbon foils have been used in space physics flight instrumentation for decades, and they are the primary mechanism behind SWAPI, an instrument on NASA IMAP. SWAPI is designed to measure solar wind particles of H++ and He+. However, during coronal mass ejections or other solar events, a model of the carbon foil and the simulation of particles through it could predict how particles of different species interact with SWAPI. A Geant4 model of a carbon foil was created and compared against published multiple scattering data, where it aligned well with the experimental results. Then, this model was updated to fit the configuration of the Space Physics' Laboratory's absolute beam monitor (ABM). SIMION simulations of the ABM informed the development of its electric fields, and flight calibration data was used as a basis of comparison. The ABM model is not as accurate compared to the scattering data, and this is likely due to missing physics lists and processes, as Geant4 has limited options for low-energy physics. In the future, a full integration of SIMION with Geant4 geometry and physics can be pursued. Additionally, further research can be done to find the best low-energy physics lists for this application.

We characterize stellar, gas, and dark matter mass distributions for 17 nearby massive disk galaxies from the PHANGS sample. This allows us to compute the gravitational potential that vertically confines the interstellar gas and determines its equilibrium scale height and weight. We first combine dynamical mass constraints from existing CO and HI rotation curves together with stellar and gas mass estimates from near-infrared, CO, and HI data. These estimates incorporate current best practices in modeling stellar mass-to-light ratios and CO-to-H2 conversion factor variations. Then, we fit joint stellar–gas–dark matter mass models to the rotation curves, adopting the classic maximal disk assumption to account for remaining zero-point uncertainties on the stellar mass-to-light ratio. After obtaining three component radial mass profiles, we calculate the vertical equilibrium gas scale height and ISM weight in the combined gravitational potential. We find the gas scale height Hgas increases from ≲100 pc in the inner disks to >500 pc at large radii, consistent with observations of our Galaxy and other edge-on galaxies. The gas weight is dominated by stellar gravity at small radii, but the gas and dark matter gravity often become important beyond 3–6 times the stellar disk radial scale length. Both our gas scale height and weight estimates are dependent on the treatment of stellar disk scale height H⋆, with Hgas varying by 30–40% when H⋆ varies by a factor of 3. The relationship between our refined ISM weight estimates and local star formation surface density generally agrees with previous observations and predictions from theory and simulations.

This thesis explores the direct detection prospects of the Cosmic Neutrino Background (CNB) and its implications for early Universe cosmology. We develop a theoretical framework for the behavior of nonzero mass neutrinos in a Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker universe and calculate the properties of the CNB last scattering surface, showing that massive relic neutrinos originate from closer distances than photons from the CMB. Using constrained cosmological simulations using the 2M++ galaxy survey and the Bayesian Origin Reconstruction from Galaxies (BORG) inference algorithm, we analyze the clustering of relic neutrinos under the influence of large-scale structure formation. We present high- and low-resolution neutrino and dark matter density maps and predict variations in neutrino flux along known superclusters and voids. Our findings support the feasibility of mapping CNB anisotropies with experiments like PTOLEMY, highlighting the influence of gravitational clustering and quantum amplification mechanisms on relic neutrino detection rates. This work contributes to improving the theoretical and simulation groundwork necessary for the first direct observation of the relic neutrino background.

Asteroseismology is an important tool for probing the fundamental characteristics of pulsating stars. Stellar oscillations are influenced by internal pressure, temperature gradients, and the structure of convective zones. Therefore, studying these oscillations enhances our understanding of stellar interiors. Research has shown that high mass main sequence stars exhibit strong pulsations. Theoretical models predict that low mass stars including M dwarfs can also pulsate at shorter periods and lower amplitudes. However, previous Kepler and K2 missions failed to detect convincing pulsations in M dwarfs likely due to a combination of instrumental limitations and the intrinsic faintness of the signals. In this work, we aim to identify solar like pulsations in low mass stars, particularly M dwarfs, using the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) 20 second cadence data. The high cadence and improved photometric precision of 20 second cadence data provide our best current opportunity to detect these faint pulsations especially in the low frequency, low amplitude regime where they are expected to occur. We extracted and analyzed light curves from our target stars to identify and characterize noteworthy signals. After processing the data, we used Lomb Scargle periodograms, power spectrum, and threshold analysis to investigate the nature of these signals. Our analysis revealed a variety of phenomena, including stellar flares, eclipsing binaries, variable stars, previously uncatalogued pulsations from nearby higher mass stars, and strong rotational modulation signatures in many of our targets.

A fraction of stars in binary systems are known to be companion stars to compact objects: white dwarfs (WDs), neutron stars (NSs), or stellar mass black holes (BHs). When these systems are detached and edge-on to our line of sight, they are known as self-lensing binaries (SLBs). During the eclipses of a SLB, it is possible to see light curve bumps from gravitational lensing while observing the flux of the companion star.

So far, five WD SLBs with main sequence star companions have been detected, but none for SLBs with other compact objects. Recently, Gaia detected three non-lensing BH-MS binaries in their DR3, indicating that the first SLBs with BH or NS lenses may be detected in the near future with improved photometric precision.

To model what such systems might look like, I developed \texttt{SLBlensing}, a publicly available Python class that efficiently simulates light curve profiles of SLBs to leading order, implementing geometric lensing and occultation, limb and gravity darkening, Doppler boosting, ellipsoidal variation, and irradiation. This code is validated against previously calculated light curve profiles from observed systems KOI-3278 and three WD SLBs discovered by Kepler to reported survey precision ($\sim 10-4$ in relative flux), and then used to characterize lensing signatures for a broad range of stellar companions with compact object lenses. Lensing signatures for giant star companions are often overshadowed by Doppler boosting and ellipsoidal variation, while BH-MS binary pairs are found to produce the strongest lensing signals.

A Monte Carlo observability calculation for Gaia DR5, combining detectability and relative abundance of each binary type within 1000 pc, places upper limit estimates of $\lesssim 578$, $\lesssim 6$, and $\lesssim 5$ detectable SLBs with WD, NS, and BH lenses, respectively. Despite NS lenses having the highest intrinsic photometric observability, NS binaries with companion stars are not abundant enough compared to WD systems to dominate future SLB detections at 1000 pc.

\texttt{SLBlensing} is publicly available at \url{https://github.com/lmanqiwang/SLBlensing}.

When stars form in molecular clouds, their radiation ionizes the surrounding gas, creating expanding HII regions. These regions, by disrupting the clouds in which stars are born, have a significant impact on the regulation of star formation. Their size can also be used by observers to estimate the ages of their progenitor star clusters. In this work, we investigate the evolution of HII regions in TIGRESS-NCR, state-of-the-art radiation-magnetohydrodynamic (RMHD) simulations of the multi-phase interstellar medium (ISM). We construct time series of the evolution of surface density and emission measure around the star clusters in the simulation. We average these surface density profiles to determine the size of the HII region as a function of star cluster age. We also develop a simple spherical model for the evolution of HII regions with correction factors to account for their non-radial expansion, the dust-absorption and escape of the ionizing photons, and other effects. By comparing this model to the HII region evolution determined from the simulation, we recommend particular values for these correction factors to achieve the best fit to the data. In doing so, we suggest a method by which observers can date star clusters based on the size of their surrounding HII regions.

The Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) is projected to discover hundreds of gravitationally lensed Type Ia supernovae (glSNe), offering an unprecedented opportunity for time-delay cosmography and independent measurements of the Hubble constant. However, the majority of Rubin-discovered glSNe will be marginally resolved in ground-based imaging, making accurate deblending of the multiply-imaged supernovae from the foreground lens and host galaxy a critical challenge. We present a new framework to extract light curves of the multiply-imaged SNe from blended glSNe systems via joint forward modeling of multi-epoch, multi-band high-resolution space-based imaging and ground-based imaging using \texttt{Scarlet2}, combined with Gaussian Process time-delay inference using \texttt{GausSN}. Using pixel-level simulations of Rubin and Roman imaging of typical glSNe systems from the Goldstein et al. 2019 catalog across a range of angular separations, we quantify pipeline performance as a function of source blending and space-based follow-up availability. We find that Rubin-only observations are sufficient to recover time-delays with sub-day mean errors, outperforming configurations that include supplemental Roman epochs. SN image separations are recovered to $\sim 10-2$ arcsecond precision even when sources are initialized with significant spatial offsets. These results suggest transient light curves, time-delays, and image positions can be extracted from Rubin data alone, while more accurate lens mass modeling can be performed separately using archival high-resolution imaging, reducing the need for prompt space-based follow-up and substantially increasing the number of systems suitable for time-delay cosmography.

The standard Big Bang model of cosmology requires the universe to emerge from highly specific and finely-tuned initial conditions, encapsulated by the well-known horizon and flatness problems. Inflation, a period of accelerated expansion in the early universe, was put forth to solve these problems. Since its introduction in 1981, over a hundred different models of inflation have been proposed. This zoo of inflation models, in which inflation can be driven by a thermodynamic phase transition or can be triggered by the chaotic initial conditions after the big bang, all suffer from the same inescapable problem: they require ultra-fine tuning in order to produce the right amplitude and tilt for the scalar curvature fluctuations, and the right tensor-to-scalar ratio that are consistent with observations. To make matters worse, the Planck 2013 results eliminate all but the plateau models of inflation. However, these plateau models come with their own unique problems, namely, 1) gradients and inhomogeneities can quickly grow in the time between when the universe exits the quantum gravity dominated phase and when inflation can start, and 2) the eternal inflation and multiverse problem. Recently, Kallosh and Linde have proposed a model that they think will avoid the problems above; specifically, they propose a two-field model which sums a quadratic and plateau potential. In this study, we have tested whether this model really works, i.e. with this model of the inflaton field, can inflation start despite initial gradients and can the eternal inflation problem be avoided? We have conducted the first numerical general relativity study of a multi-field model of inflation. This study is the first of its kind to include the consideration of quantum runaway and the multiverse, in addition to testing whether the gradient growth problem occurs. We have modified the tetrad formulation of the (3+1)-dimensional Einstein-scalar field equations to accommodate two canonical scalar fields, and to test initial variations along one spatial dimension. We have performed numerous tests with a wide range of initial conditions of the $\varphi$ and $\chi$ field, and we find that this model fails. We find two distinct failure modes: a failure to avoid eternal inflation and the multiverse problem and a failure to smooth. Significantly, we find that our simulations are second order convergent, meaning our results satisfy the field equation constraints. Because the Kallosh-Linde model is representative of the best hope for addressing the growth of gradients and multiverse problems while also producing key observable cosmological quantities, its failure to do so has important implications for the viability of inflation models in general.

Since their first detection in 2015 by the LIGO, gravitational waves have revolutionized our understanding of compact objects. These dense stellar remnants such as neutron stars and black holes merge to generate gravitational waves. The merger of BNS can be accompanied by an electromagnetic signature of thermal emission called a "kilonova" at optical, near-infrared, and ultraviolet wavelengths. The BNS merger GW170817 led to the first detection of gravitational waves with electromagnetic radiation and the first confident detection of a kilonova. To date, only one multi-messenger BBH merger has been definitively detected. This contributes to large uncertainties in the relationship between binary parameters and properties of their kilonova counterparts, which are typically parameterized via fitting formulae. We attempt to place direct, data-driven constraints on the coefficients within the fitting formula through Bayesian analysis. We apply our framework to simulated BNS gravitational wave signals and their counterparts with a known model to place an independent constraint on the mapping between BNS parameters and kilonova properties. The constraint and this framework will demonstrate what will be possible with a population of many detected BNS mergers and counterparts in upcoming observing runs, given improved sensitivity.

General relativity represents one of the most successful physical theories ever constructed, redefining gravity not as a force but as the curvature of spacetime itself. Nowhere in the cosmos is this success more dramatic, or more challenged, than in the theory's prediction of black holes. This thesis traces the development of gravity from Newtonian mechanics to Einstein's geometric framework, showing how general relativity triumphantly explains gravitational phenomena while predicting its own breakdown under extreme conditions. Understanding how black holes simultaneously confirm and destabilize general relativity is essential for clarifying why the search for a quantum theory of gravity is not speculative, but logically forced by the structure of our best classical theory.

Beginning with Newtonian gravity, the thesis establishes the conceptual assumptions of absolute space, absolute time, and a force-based interaction between objects before showing how empirical and theoretical tensions motivated Einstein's radical reformulation of the theory. The geometric structure of general relativity is then introduced through the Einstein field equations and the geodesic motion of matter, demonstrating how gravity emerges from a curvature of spacetime rather than physical force. Exact solutions to these equations, notably the Schwarzschild and Kerr metrics, give rise to black holes, revealing concepts such as event horizons, strong-field effects, and an unexpected simplicity captured by the ``no-hair'' theorem.

The thesis next follows the transition of black holes from mathematical curiosities to astrophysical realities, making true the physical triumph of general relativity. Observational evidence from X-ray binaries, stellar orbits around Sagittarius A*, gravitational-wave detections, and black hole imaging demonstrates that general relativity accurately describes black holes in the observable strong-field regime. These empirical feats confirm the Kerr description of black holes while simultaneously highlighting a profound limitation: all observations are restricted to the exterior spacetime, leaving the interior singularity fundamentally untested.

At the core of every classical black hole lies a singularity: a region where spacetime curvature diverges and general relativity loses predictive power. Through the singularity theorems, cosmic censorship, and the black hole information paradox, this thesis argues that singularities represent not empirical failures but internal inconsistencies in the theory itself. The combination of singularities and Hawking radiation exposes a deep conflict between general relativity and quantum mechanics, indicating that Einstein's theory is incomplete rather than incorrect.

Finally, this thesis will explore how black hole thermodynamics, horizon entropy, and holographic ideas suggest a new perspective in which spacetime and gravity emerge from underlying quantum degrees of freedom. In this view, black holes are not merely endpoints of classical physics but gateways to a deeper understanding of quantum spacetime. By examining black holes as both confirmations and stress tests of general relativity, this work positions them as central objects in the ongoing search for a quantum theory of gravity.

Hot Jupiters can be misaligned around stars with effective temperatures greater than ∼ 6100 K, and are seemingly always in alignment with stars cooler than this threshold. The high stellar obliquities of hot stars are thought to be left over from high primordial obliquities in hot Jupiter systems, due to the lack of a thick convective envelope in stars where Teff ≳ 6100 K, whereas inertial waves excited and dissipated in the convective envelopes of cooler stars may be able to tidally damp the obliquities of stars below this break. Such obliquity distributions have long been invoked as a potential channel of evidence for explaining the origins of hot Jupiters. We explore this theory through time evolutions of the relevant orbital and stellar parameters, implementing more realistic tidal evolution theory than previous explorations of this idea. We also consider the theory of core-envelope decoupling as a means of more easily tidally aligning systems by way of inertial wave damping. We find that there is no set of initial orbital, spin, and arrival parameters that can sufficiently reproduce the observed obliquity distributions of cool and hot stars simultaneously, and that core- envelope decoupling produces exceptionally strong damping of hot star obliquities and is thus starkly opposed to observations. We are unable to rectify observed obliquity distributions with theories of diverging stellar structures and inertial wave dissipation alone.

One of the major discoveries made by the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) was the ubiquity of S-shaped reversals in the interplanetary magnetic field called magnetic switchbacks. The structure of the magnetic field affects the acceleration and transport of solar energetic particles across the interplanetary medium. Understanding the interaction between these particles and magnetic switchbacks can help clarify how these processes work. To that end, this thesis aims to use energetic particle pitch angle distribution (PAD) data from PSP, and consequently estimate the scale size of magnetic switchbacks. From 8 years of PSP data, 25 switchback events were identified, out of which 23 could be resolved (i.e., had sufficient associated PAD data). The gyroradii of these particles were calculated and used to estimate the average switchback scale size, which was found to lie between 10000 km and 20000 km. Additionally, it was discovered that the size of switchbacks scales as a power of heliocentric distance (scale size proportional to R^{1.83}).