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SLAS Regular Meeting
Friday, October 17, 2014 7:30pm
McDonnell Hall,
Washington University
The Search For Planets
of Other Suns
by
Dr. Catarina Ubach
Swinburne University of Technology
Dr. Catarina Ubach will be featured at the
October meeting of the St. Louis Astronomical
Society. The meeting will begin at
7:30 PM Friday, October 17, in McDonnell
Hall, Room 162. More than 900 "exoplanets" are now
known to orbit other stars. That number
will continue to increase as telescopes both
on the ground and in space search the skies.
Dr. Ubach will outline the history of planet
searching, and review what has been discovered
since the first exoplanets were detected
in 1995. She will also explain the
likely nature of future technologies. Advanced
devices will reveal the chemical
composition of the atmospheres of exoplanets,
as well as provide direct images
of Earth's distant cousins. They may even
detect traces of life on other worlds.
Dr. Catarina Ubach obtained her PhD at
Swinburne University of Technology in
Astrophysics and is an astronomer interested
in public outreach programs as well as
research. Her own research is focused on
the early stages of planet formation, particularly
on the growth of rocky dust grains in
the clouds from which new stars and planets
form.
Upcoming meetings
November: Dar k Matter , Dar k E ner gy,
and the Accelerating Universe - Dr. Bharat
Ratra of Kansas State University
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Meeting Agenda
Welcome
Introduction of Officers
Dr. Ubach
Announcements and Star Parties
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