News
NCCR PlanetS: Business cards
The communication platform has received several requests for NCCR business cards. Therefore, we have prepared an order form with the templates below. Your order will be sent to the printer, as soon as we have received enough orders (therefore might take longer to produce). Please inform us, if your order is urgent. Any expenses related […]
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Atmospheric chemistry on paper
Normally computers speed up calculations. But with his new pen-and-paper formula Kevin Heng of the University of Bern gets his results thousands of times faster than using conventional computer codes. The astrophysicist calculates the abundances of molecules (known as atmospheric chemistry) in exoplanetary atmospheres. Ultimately, deciphering the abundances of molecules allows us to interpret if […]
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ETH welcomes the ERIS Consortium to the Hönggerberg!
On 19-20 July, approximately 30 scientists and engineers representing five partner institutions met on the ETH Honggerberg campus to review progress on the Enhanced Resolution Imager and Spectrograph (ERIS) under development for the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT). The ERIS consortium, comprised of the Max-Planck-Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (PI: R. Davies), the […]
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“Almost certainly, the Earth’s orbit will survive”
To students, Scott Tremaine is best known as co-author of “the bible of astrophysics”. His textbook “Galactic Dynamics” is one of the most cited references in astrophysics. The Richard Black Professor at the world famous Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), Princeton, is also an expert in the theory of the Solar System and is credited […]
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Workshop on Circumplanetary Disks
Twenty-eight NCCR PlanetS researchers representing six out of the seven research projects met on 7 June at the ETH in Zurich to discuss the properties of circumplanetary disks thought to exist around forming gas giant planets. Many models for the formation of the largest satellites of the gas/ice giants in the Solar System assume such […]
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A new building for planets hunters
Astrotech, the new building of the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Geneva was inaugurated on Monday 27th June, in the presence of the local authorities of Versoix, and Geneva and a representative of the federal authorities. Over 80 responded to the University invitation to attend the inauguration together with a large part of the […]
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Reporting on our activities
Dear Reader, The beginning of the presentations of our activities to the international expert panel and Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) representatives marks the end of a year-long preparation process. While PlanetS enjoys significant freedom in its organisation and priority setting, reporting on our activities is an essential element in our yearly cycle. This takes the […]
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ESPRESSO
ESPRESSO, the new very high-resolution spectrometer built under the direction of the Astronomy Department of the University of Geneva, is in its integration phase in the new observatory building clean room, inaugurated on 27th June. Take a virtual visit.
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How planetary age reveals water content
Water is necessary for life as we know it, but too much water is bad for habitability. Therefore, to study the habitability of extrasolar planets, determining the abundance of water is a key element. Yann Alibert, Science Officer of PlanetS, shows that the observation of exoplanets at different ages can be used to set statistical […]
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The Universe from a Child’s Perspective
“The Universe provides ample scope to use one’s own imagination,” says Anna Lehninger. The art historian investigates children’s drawings as a cultural asset and has had a look at the pictures resulting from the drawing campaign carried out in association with the CHEOPS mission. In early 2018, 3000 drawings will be sent with the CHEOPS […]
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