All 2015 Content
Session
Technical Session IX: Education
Abstract
The existence of an Earth-like exoplanet is of particular interest to the science community and would alter the world’s view on life in the universe. There are three major requirements for Earth-like exoplanets: size, temperature and the presence of an atmosphere. The exoplanet should be between 0.5 to 1.5 earth radii and located within the habitable zone of its host star. Spectral measurements can detect biomarkers (such as oxygen) in the atmosphere, potentially indicating an active ecosystem. There are missions to illustrate the existence of such an exoplanet (Kepler and TESS); however they do not measure spectra and these observed planets are too far away for biomarkers to be detectable with foreseeable technology. Currently planned instruments, which utilize transit spectroscopy, such as JWST, are statistically unlikely to have a transiting Earth-like planet close enough to detect biomarkers in its spectrum. A (non-transiting) Earth-like planet must be directly imaged for an atmosphere to be established and to understand the elemental composition. A coronagraph is a device capable of directly imaging a habitable Earth-like planet by blocking out the light of the host star. Current mission concepts such as WFIRST/AFT are being funded by NASA to improve this technology, but are not designed to image Earth-like planets. The closest star system, Alpha Centauri, is estimated to be between a 40-50% chance of having a habitable Earth-like planet around each star according to some of the most recent analyses of Kepler data, and is the easiest place to search for habitable Earth-like planets due to its proximity to us. This has motivated the study and design of a coronagraph to look for habitable Earth-like planets around Alpha Centauri by Rus Belikov and Eduardo Bendek, called ACESat.
The Orbital Design of Alpha Centauri Exoplanet Satellite (ACESat)
The existence of an Earth-like exoplanet is of particular interest to the science community and would alter the world’s view on life in the universe. There are three major requirements for Earth-like exoplanets: size, temperature and the presence of an atmosphere. The exoplanet should be between 0.5 to 1.5 earth radii and located within the habitable zone of its host star. Spectral measurements can detect biomarkers (such as oxygen) in the atmosphere, potentially indicating an active ecosystem. There are missions to illustrate the existence of such an exoplanet (Kepler and TESS); however they do not measure spectra and these observed planets are too far away for biomarkers to be detectable with foreseeable technology. Currently planned instruments, which utilize transit spectroscopy, such as JWST, are statistically unlikely to have a transiting Earth-like planet close enough to detect biomarkers in its spectrum. A (non-transiting) Earth-like planet must be directly imaged for an atmosphere to be established and to understand the elemental composition. A coronagraph is a device capable of directly imaging a habitable Earth-like planet by blocking out the light of the host star. Current mission concepts such as WFIRST/AFT are being funded by NASA to improve this technology, but are not designed to image Earth-like planets. The closest star system, Alpha Centauri, is estimated to be between a 40-50% chance of having a habitable Earth-like planet around each star according to some of the most recent analyses of Kepler data, and is the easiest place to search for habitable Earth-like planets due to its proximity to us. This has motivated the study and design of a coronagraph to look for habitable Earth-like planets around Alpha Centauri by Rus Belikov and Eduardo Bendek, called ACESat.
