Presentations
FR 2
The Ubiquity of Exoplanets
Dr Simon O'Toole,
Deputy Gemini Scientist, Anglo-Australian Observatory
In the 18 years since the first planets were discovered outside our Solar System, exoplanets have been discovered in all manner of environments, orbiting everything from pulsars to Sun-like stars to cataclysmic variable binaries. In this time the field of exoplanetary science has also grown from fringe to mainstream science, commanding millions of dollars of research funding. Despite the vast financial outlay by professional astronomers, a great opportunity still exists for the amateur astronomical community to play a significant role in the detection and monitoring of planets orbiting other stars. In this presentation, I will give an overview of this exciting field, including what is being done in Australia professionally and what ways amateurs could become involved.
Simon is currently working at the Anglo-Australian Observatory in Marsfield. He finished his PhD in Astrophysics at the University of Sydney in 2002 before moving to Germany, where he worked for three years at the Observatory in the World-heritage listed town of Bamberg. His research there included studying "starquakes" on the surface of hot, old stars near the end of their lives, as well as their chemical make-up.
In 2005, Simon returned to Australia to join the Anglo-Australian Planet Search team. His research involves hunting for planets orbiting nearby stars. The Anglo-Australian Planet Search is an international collaboration who use the Anglo-Australian Telescope near Coonabarabran to monitor over 250 stars looking for the tell-tale "wobble" caused by planets orbiting stars like our Sun. To date, the group has found more than 35 planets, including several systems with more than one planet. Simon has been carrying out detailed statistical studies on this sample with the goal of determining how planets form.
Since late 2008, Simon has been the Australian Deputy Gemini Scientist, and is responsible for providing technical support to Australian users of the twin 8-metre Gemini telescopes in Hawaii and Chile.