![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090507201549im_/http://nsf.gov/images/x.gif)
Event
Alan T. Waterman Award Lecture
![](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090507201549im_/http://nsf.gov/images/greenline.jpg)
May 12, 2009 11:00 AM
to May 12, 2009 12:00 PM
Room 375
David Charbonneau, 2009 Alan T. Waterman Award Winner How to Find a Habitable Exoplanet Co-Sponsored by MPS and OIA Abstract: When exoplanets eclipse their parent stars, we are granted direct estimates of their masses and physical sizes, and we can study their atmospheres. Such systems have profoundly impacted our understanding of giant exoplanets akin to Jupiter, yet no eclipsing examples of rocky exoplanets have yet been found. By targeting nearby low-mass stars, a survey using humble telescopes is capable of discovering rocky planets orbiting at the distance required to permit liquid water on their surfaces. The discovery of such planets would provide fundamental constraints on the physical structure of planets that are primarily rock and ice in composition. Moreover, we can study the atmospheric chemistry of these potentially habitable worlds, and ultimately search for biomarkers indicating life.
Meeting Type Lecture
Contacts
Mayra N. Montrose, (703) 292-4757 mmontros@nsf.gov
NSF Related Organizations
Office of Integrative Activities
Related Websites Alan T Waterman Award Flyer: http://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/activities/medals/Charbonneau_flyer.ppt
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