[Baps] Extra solar planet talk Thursday 12:30 pm at CfA

[Sarah T. Stewart-Mukhopadhyay]

http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/cfa/calendar/latest.html

12:30 pm: Optical and Infrared Astronomy Division Lunch Talk. "Photometric
Follow-up Observations of Transiting Extrasolar Planet Candidates," Dr. Matt
Holman, CfA. Pratt Conference Room.

Abstract: Although more than one hundred planets have been discovered to
date in ongoing radial velocity surveys, so far only one, OGLE-TR-56, has
been discovered in a transit survey and confirmed with radial velocity
observations. However, with the large number of transit searches currently
underway (OGLE, HAT, EXPLORE, PISCES, STARE, STEPSS, etc), the census of
planets discovered through transit observations is expected to dramatically
increase in the next few years. High precision photometric follow-up
observations, attainable given the relatively bright host stars of many of
these planets, can yield of a wealth physical information about the planets,
as recently demonstrated with HST observations of HD209458. The CfA, with
access to large aperture telescopes in both hemispheres, in uniquely
positioned to carry out such observations. I will present two-color
photometric observations and a radius estimate of the transiting planet
candidate, OGLE-TR-10, obtained with the 6.5-m Clay telescope. In addition,
I will present theoretical calculations of the changes in the interval
between successive transit that result from the gravitational influence of a
second, exterior planet in transiting systems. 


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