BDT meeting #3

Meeting #3

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Agenda items• News and discussions

– ESA news– EP-RAT news– The Blue Dots conference– Funding issues (H. Lammer)– Methodology, deliverables

• Microlensing• Single aperture imaging

• Transit (+ astrometry?)

• Radial velocities

• Planetary atmospheres• Targets

• Habitability

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EP-RAT news

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Blue Dots conference• Date: 14th-18th September, 2008

• Location: CosmoCaixa, Barcelona

• SOC: – BDT (21 people):

• V. Coudé du Foresto, I. Ribas, H. Zinnecker, S. Wolf, F. Selsis, C. Cockell, G. Tinetti, A. Boccaletti, M. Ollivier, J-P. Beaulieu, N. Santos, D. Segransan, A. Sozzeti, E. Szuszkiewicz, H. Lammer, C. Keller,Gerard van Belle, C. Beichman, H. Shibai, M. Khodachenko, G. Zhao, A. Chakraborty

– B. Danchi (NASA Ames), W. Traub (JPL), D. Sasselov (CfA, TBC)

• LOC: I. Ribas + ?

• Support: City of Barcelona + ?

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Blue Dots conference

• Rationale:

Does life exist elsewhere than on our Earth? This question is almost as old as humanity, yet only in the last few decades has it been possible to address it scientifically. Since the discovery of a companion to the star 51 Peg in 1995 we now know that planets can orbit other suns. To date, about 250 exoplanetary systems have been found in our galaxy, a number which is growing exponentially as new discoveries are being made almost on a daily basis. None of these worlds however, so far, can sustain life as we know it. One of the most important scientific challenges for the 21st century is therefore the search of habitable worlds around other stars, and the characterization of their atmosphere with the goal of detecting signs of biological activity. Eventually, a space mission will fly that will be able to address those questions. This is a long term, broad interdisciplinary endeavor, which involves astrophysicists, biologists, planetary scientists and instrument specialists.

The Blue Dots conference will bring together prominent international experts in those fields. They will discuss the necessary steps to be undertaken in order to detect life on another planet, and propose a road map towards that goal.

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Methodology

• How to collect information ?– Virtual call for proposal replaced by

proactive collection

• How to synthesize it ?

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Observational grid(for instrumentation groups)

• Observables: – Contrast, reflex motion etc.

• Precision / sensitivity

• Budget:– 30M€ / 5 years

– 300M€ / 10 years

– 700M€ / 15 years

– ++++M€ / 20 years

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Planetary characterization grid

• Milestone scientific questions• Physical facts:

– Mass, radius, composition, temperature etc.

– Statiscal depth (sample -> exhaustive)

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Matrix example (µlensing)• Sweet spot: Low mass stars / low mass planets

• Parameter space for detectability

• Define quality criterion for each parameter

• List nominal mission (or range of missions) for each box

G M L XL

Mp> 10Mearth all> 1Mearth some

> 1Mearth all> 0.1Mearth some

Mstar 0.1 – 1 Msol 0.1 – 1 Msol

a 0,5 – 5 AU 0,5 – 5 AU

10 / 580 580

320

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Connecting the grids

• Milestone questions vs. physical facts– PC WG

• Physical facts vs. observable, sensitivity– PC & Inst WGs

• Observables vs. budget– Inst WG & Industry

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Presenting grids

• On the Web site as they build up• At the BD conference

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http://www.blue-dots.net