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Astronomy Colloquium

OSU Astronomy Colloquium (Image Source: NASA)
February 15, 2018
2:30PM - 3:30PM
1080 Physics Research Building

Date Range
Add to Calendar 2018-02-15 14:30:00 2018-02-15 15:30:00 Astronomy Colloquium Searching for Biosignatures from Other WorldsJi Wang - CaltechAre we alone? This is arguably humanity’s most fundamental question. My research is to explore the possibilities of addressing this question with a handful of potentially habitable exoplanets and astronomical facilities that are currently available and will be available in the foreseeable future. I will talk about assessing habitability by means of planetary orbital architecture and stellar environment. I will further discuss searching for biosignatures in the atmospheres of the most promising candidates, with a novel technique that combines high contrast imaging and high-resolution spectroscopy. With a multi-pronged instrumentation upgrade, the LBT will enable both the habitability study and the biosignature search. The possibility of answering “Are we alone” will eventually become reality at OSU. Coffee and Donuts will be served at 2:00pm in 4054 McPherson Lab. 1080 Physics Research Building Department of Astronomy astronomy@osu.edu America/New_York public

Searching for Biosignatures from Other Worlds

Ji Wang - Caltech

Are we alone? This is arguably humanity’s most fundamental question. My research is to explore the possibilities of addressing this question with a handful of potentially habitable exoplanets and astronomical facilities that are currently available and will be available in the foreseeable future. I will talk about assessing habitability by means of planetary orbital architecture and stellar environment. I will further discuss searching for biosignatures in the atmospheres of the most promising candidates, with a novel technique that combines high contrast imaging and high-resolution spectroscopy. With a multi-pronged instrumentation upgrade, the LBT will enable both the habitability study and the biosignature search. The possibility of answering “Are we alone” will eventually become reality at OSU.
 
Coffee and Donuts will be served at 2:00pm in 4054 McPherson Lab.