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SUMMARY:The New Era of Exoplanetary Characterization - Nikku Madhusudhan (
 IoA)
DTSTART:20131107T163000Z
DTEND:20131107T173000Z
UID:TALK43544@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Michele Trenti
DESCRIPTION:Exoplanetary discoveries in the past two decades have unveiled
  an astonishing diversity in the physical characteristics of exoplanetary 
 systems\, including their orbital properties\, masses\, radii\, equilibriu
 m temperatures\, and stellar hosts. Exoplanets known today range from gas-
 giants to nearly Earth-size planets\, and some even in the habitable zones
  of their host stars. Recent advances in exoplanet observations and theore
 tical methods are now leading to unprecedented constraints on the physicoc
 hemical properties of exoplanetary atmospheres\, interiors\, and their for
 mation conditions. I will discuss the present and future of this new era o
 f exoplanetary characterization. I will present some of the latest constra
 ints on atmospheric chemical compositions and temperature structures of ex
 oplanets\, made possible by state-of-the-art observations from space and g
 round\, and their implications for atmospheric processes and formation con
 ditions of exoplanets. I will also discuss constraints emerging on the int
 eriors and formation environments of super-Earths\, whose interior composi
 tions span a wide gamut - from water worlds with thick volatile envelopes 
 to super-Mercuries\, lava planets\, and carbon planets - thereby testing t
 he limits of our understanding of planetary mineralogies and their equatio
 ns of state under exotic astrophysical conditions. The exciting future pro
 spects of exoplanetary characterization will be discussed in the light of 
 major current\, upcoming\, and future observational facilities\, along wit
 h several open questions of fundamental nature in the field.
LOCATION:Sackler Lecture Theatre\, IoA (tea at 4:00 pm)
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