TAP Colloquium- The Tip of the Planetary Iceberg: How Observed Planets May Differ from their More Distant Cousins

Abstract: Most observed exoplanets orbit close to their stars, where detection and characterization techniques are currently most efficient.  Extrapolating from their properties to the properties of more distant worlds, including those in the habitable zones of Sun-like stars, requires understanding the physical processes that shape these different regions of planetary systems.  Mass scales important for planet formation, dynamical evolution of orbits, planetary compositions, and the importance of atmospheric escape all likely change with orbital distance.  In this talk, I will present recent work studying the growth of super-Earth and giant planets in inner planetary systems as well as photoevaporation-driven loss of hydrogen from these planets’ atmospheres, with an eye toward connecting the properties of observed planets to the predicted properties of their more distant cousins.

Refreshments served at 3:15pm in the Kuiper Atrium