UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — To commemorate its 10th anniversary, Penn State's Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds (CEHW) will host a celebration on April 2, with three sessions of talks and panel discussions for technical, academic and public audiences. 

Collectively, these sessions will celebrate the extraordinary progress in exoplanet science over the past decade and the long journey that has led to Penn State emerging as one of the world’s leading centers for exoplanet research and education. 

Talks by distinguished guests and CEHW faculty also will stimulate current CEHW and University members to think about the future of exoplanet research and education. All talks will be held on the University Park campus. 

Session I: A Decade of Progress in the Search for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds

1:15–2:45 p.m., 538 Davey Lab

Rebekah Dawson, assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics, Penn State

Debra Fischer, professor of astronomy, Yale University

Dave Latham, lecturer and senior astronomer, Harvard University

This session will be focused on the "big picture" of exoplanet science and is intended for academics, not just astronomers.

A panel discussion will follow the speakers' presentations.

 

Session II: The State-of-the-Art in Transit & Doppler Characterization of Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds

3:30–5 p.m., 538 Davey Lab

Debra Fischer, professor of astronomy, Yale University

Dave Latham, lecturer and senior astronomer, Harvard University

Suvrath Mahadevan, associate professor of astronomy and astrophysics, Penn State

This session will feature technical talks, targeting astronomers.

A panel discussion will follow these presentations.

 

Public Event: The Future of Characterization of Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds

6–7:30 p.m., Berg Auditorium (100 Huck Life Sciences Building)

Debra Fischer, professor of astronomy, Yale University

Dave Latham, lecturer and senior astronomer, Harvard University

This session is intended for science enthusiasts from the general public.

A panel Q&A with the speakers will follow their presentations.

 

About the Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds

Penn State's Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds seeks to discover planets beyond our solar system, to characterize planetary systems and their host stars, and to understand the implications of the abundance of potentially habitable planets for the possibility of life beyond Earth and the origins of our own solar system. CEHW is devoted to broad, interdisciplinary research in this exciting, rapidly developing field. 

Members of the center — who come from the Eberly College of Science's Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics as well as Penn State's College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and College of Engineering — are experts in several critical areas of extrasolar planet research. The Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics also has substantial access to the Hobby-Eberly telescope, which is recognized as a premier planet-searching facility. 

CEHW promotes collaborations among scientists at Penn State and between Penn State and other institutions; attracts young, capable researchers to Penn State; and provides a solid platform for a coordinated effort to improve science education on campus and among the general public