2. Hunting for exoplanets in extreme and unique environments

     

    ESA supervisor: Matthew Standing
    Collaborator(s): Bruno Merin Martin (ESAC), Jorge Lillo-Box (CAB)

    Site: ESAC

    Since the discovery of the first exoplanet 51 Pegasi b in 1995 we have now discovered over 5700. With this many discoveries we can start to explore questions like how common are Gas giant planets? and perhaps even one of the most infamous questions in Astronomy, are exoplanets habitable? The more exoplanets that are discovered the more we can understand the physics behind the formation of planetary systems and even how our own solar system may have formed.

    In this project you will gain an understanding of exoplanet science and get the chance to work with real data from telescopes such as ASTEP (Antarctica), VLT (Chile), CAHA 3.5m (Spain), or ESA's CHEOPS space mission (depending on data availability when the project begins). Topics and techniques will depend on data availability but will either be searching for Tatooine-like planet signals, or confirming whether planets exist in the 'Neptune desert'. You will learn how to plan observations, reduce data directly from the telescopes, and explore various data analysis techniques (Nested sampling, MCMC, etc.) and ways to confirm planetary signals.

    The project may lead to co-authorship on a publication after the traineeship.

    Project duration: 3-6 months.

    Desirable expertise or programming language:

    • Trainee should show Enthusiasm and curiosity for the topic and for exploring scientific data.
    • Trainee should be able to carry out the entire project in English.
    • A basic background in astrophysics. Background knowledge in exoplanet science (e.g. having completed a course) would be desireable.
    • Foundation level of python is essential. The project will offer a chance to improve coding skills but a basic level in python is required.
    • Some experience with command line coding (terminal, unix) would be desirable but not required.

     

    To apply for this project please fill in an online application form through the following link.