RATIONALE:
"The search for our place in the cosmos has fascinated human beings for thousands of years. For the first time in human history we have technological capabilities that put us on the verge of answering such questions as, 'Do other Earths exist?,' '' Are they common?, 'And' Do they harbor life? ' Critical to inferring whether or not a planet is habitable or inhabited is an understanding of the exoplanetary atmosphere. Indeed, almost all of our information about temperatures and chemical abundances in planets comes from atmospheric photometry or spectroscopy. "- Sara Seager
AIMS:
- Construct the tools needed to study exoplanet atmospheres theoretically and observationally
- Identify the key physical processes responsible for atmospheric evolution
- Paint a pedagogical overview of the atmospheric structures and their diversity
- Map out future research areas
- Develop practical skills that are broadly applicable in astrophysics
- Teacher: Mark Hutchison
- Teacher: Karan Molaverdikhani