Outline:

Only nine planets were known before 1992, the ones orbiting our star, the Sun, which then included Pluto. Twenty-five years later, we have «lost» Pluto but we have gained four thousand planets in orbit around other stars. Current statistical estimates indicate that, on average, every star in our Galaxy hosts at least one planetary companion, i.e. our Milky Way is crowded with one thousand billion planets! The most revolutionary aspect of this young field is the discovery that the Solar System does not appear to be the paradigm in our Galaxy, but rather one of the many possible configurations we are seeing out there. These include planets completing a revolution in less than one day, as well as planets orbiting two stars or moving on trajectories so eccentric as to resemble comets. Some of them are freezing cold, some are so hot that their surface is molten. How do we progress from here?

Aims:

This course is aimed at providing a comprehensive view of the nature of exoplanets, through an integrated approach covering observations, data analysis and interpretation. Finding out why are these new worlds as they are is one of the key challenges of modern astrophysics.

The course is directed to students who are interested in widening their knowledge in the field of exoplanets, through an integrated approach covering observations, data analysis and interpretation. At the end of the course, students will be able to describe the methods used to detect and characterize exoplanets and current theories of planetary formation. They will also have acquired a good knowledge and understanding of a broad range of planetary subjects at the forefront of scientific research, including those outside the specific purview of the student’s degree programme. The students will also have gained highly transferable skills in statistics, spectroscopy and remote sensing techniques.

Teaching and Learning Methodology:

This course is delivered via weekly lectures supplemented by a series of workshops and additional discussion.

In addition to timetabled lecture hours, it is expected that students engage in self-study in order to master the material. This can take the form, for example, of practicing example questions and further reading in textbooks and online.