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<span style="font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>From: </b></span><span style="font-family:'Helvetica';">Debbie Meinbresse <<a href="mailto:meinbres@mit.edu">meinbres@mit.edu</a>><br>
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<span style="font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Subject: </b>
</span><span style="font-family:'Helvetica';"><b>Exoplanet Research at MIT (three 20-minute talks & a tour!)</b><br>
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<span style="font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Date: </b></span><span style="font-family:'Helvetica';">January 17, 2017 at 4:42:49 PM EST<br>
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Please share with undergrads and grad students in your department.
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<p class=""><span style="font-size:16px;" class=""><strong class="">Exoplanet Research at MIT</strong></span><br class="">
<span style="font-size:14px;" class=""><strong class="">Learn about exoplanet research being carried out at MIT.</strong></span><br class="">
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<p class=""><span style="font-size:14px;" class=""><strong class="">Unlocking the Secrets of Nearby Exoplanets with the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite
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Dr. George Ricker, 1:00-1:30pm</span><br class="">
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Abstract: Dr. Ricker will describe the development program at MIT that followed from the successful proposal to NASA for the TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) space mission. A primary goal of TESS is to locate candidate Earth-sized planets in the
solar neighborhood. A special focus will be on exoplanets that lie within the habitable zone of their host stars, where conditions might be suitable for the existence of life. The TESS science instruments will be operated from the MIT campus. TESS is scheduled
to launch from Cape Canaveral in early 2018 on a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket.</p>
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<span style="font-size:14px;" class=""><strong class="">Exoplanet Science in the era of TESS
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Dr. Jenn Burt, 1:30-2:00pm</span></p>
<p class="">Abstract: The beginning of the TESS spacecraft's science mission in mid 2018 promises the detection of thousands of exoplanets orbiting bright, nearby stars. These planets will provide astronomers with our best ever opportunity to mount extensive
follow up observation efforts and try to understand the composition, distribution and evolution of planets in our galaxy. This talk will describe the anticipated TESS planet yield, its impact on the exoplanet field, and some of the follow up methods that astronomers
will use to probe the composition of the planets' rocky cores and/or gaseous outer atmospheres.</p>
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<span style="font-size:14px;" class=""><strong class="">The Mystery of Super-Earth Exoplanets</strong><br class="">
Dr Diana Dragomir, 2:00-2:30pm</span><br class="">
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Abstract: Just 25 years ago, humanity did not know whether planets were common in the Universe or whether the Solar System was an anomaly. Then, in 1995 a giant planet was discovered in a 4-day orbit around a main sequence star. Since then, the number of exoplanets
announced every year has been increasing exponentially. We now know of planets with periods between several hours and hundreds of years, and ranging in size from smaller than Mercury to larger than Jupiter. Most intriguing are the super-Earths, exoplanets
with sizes between those of the Earth and Neptune. While absent in the Solar System, the Kepler satellite found they are ubiquitous around other stars. Yet we know very little about what these planets are like. Even in cases where we can measure their density,
it is difficult to determine their composition. I will discuss how astronomers use both humble and powerful telescopes to gradually reveal the nature of this fascinating class of exoplanets.<br class="">
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<p class=""><strong class="">Tour of the TESS Test Facility</strong></p>
<p class="">The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will discover thousands of exoplanets in orbit around the brightest stars in the sky. In a two-year survey of the solar neighborhood, TESS will monitor more than 200,000 stars for temporary drops
in brightness caused by planetary transits. This first-ever spaceborne all-sky transit survey will identify planets ranging from Earth-sized to gas giants, around a wide range of stellar types and orbital distances. No ground-based survey can achieve this
feat. A tour of the TESS test facility is available for a small number of attendees on a first-come-first-served basis.</p>
<p class=""><strong class="">PLEASE NOTE:</strong></p>
<p class="">No enrollment limit for talk, no advance sign-up required.</p>
<p class="">The tour is limited to 12 individuals who sign up in advance (email <a href="mailto:meinbres@mit.edu" class="">
meinbres@mit.edu</a>) by <strong class="">12noon on January 19</strong>. Please provide your name as it appears on your official ID (passport, valid driver's license, or state-issued ID). Be sure to bring your ID with you for the tour. </p>
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<div style="orphans: 2; widows: 2;" class=""><span class="x_x_Apple-style-span"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="'Franklin Gothic Medium'">Debbie Meinbresse | Assistant to the Director </font></span></div>
<div style="orphans: 2; widows: 2;" class=""><span style="font-family: 'Franklin Gothic Medium';" class="">MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research</span></div>
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<div class="" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" color="#103ffb"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" color="#1f497d" face="Franklin Gothic Medium"><span class="x_x_Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(192, 0, 0);">Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT)</span></font></font></div>
<div class="" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" color="#414141"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="Franklin Gothic Medium">77 Massachusetts Av</font><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="Franklin Gothic Medium">en</font><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="Franklin Gothic Medium">ue,
37-241 Cambridge, MA 02139</font></font></div>
<div class="" style="font-family: Helvetica;"><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="Franklin Gothic Medium" color="#414141">Tel: (617) 253-1456 | Fax: (617) 253-3111 |</font><font class="x_x_Apple-style-span" face="Franklin Gothic Medium" style="color: rgb(75, 75, 75);"> <a href="mailto:meinbres@mit.edu" class="">meinbres@mit.edu</a></font></div>
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