Exploring Distant Worlds with the JWST: Néstor Espinoza at the OAE’s 6th Shaw-IAU Workshop
2This is a talk given at the 6th Shaw-IAU Workshop on Astronomy for Education, organised by the IAU Office of Astronomy for Education (OAE, http//astro4edu.org).
Title: Exploring Distant Worlds with the James Webb Space Telescope
In this talk, I introduce some of the science the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is enabling for the field of extrasolar planets. In particular, the field of exoplanet science itself is introduced in the context of our own Solar System, as well as the big questions it might enable to answer and why JWST is a perfect observatory to perform studies of these objects. I exemplify JWST exoplanet science via two sets of science results: the detection of remnant planets around white dwarfs and the detection and characterization of exoplanet atmospheres around small planets. The techniques that enable these discoveries are introduced and discussed.
About Néstor Espinoza:
Dr. Espinoza is an astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) -- the science and operations center for the Hubble (HST) and James Webb (JWST) Space Telescopes -- where he acts as the Mission Scientist for Exoplanet Science. He works both on the detection of new exoplanets -- planets outside our Solar System -- as well as on the characterization of their atmospheres and interiors.
About the 6th Shaw-IAU Workshop:
The 6th Shaw-IAU Workshop took place: 12 - 15 November 2024. The Shaw-IAU workshops focus on astronomy education for primary and secondary school students and teacher training both in universities and in service. This year's workshop featured two special topics: an exploration of the first two years of the James Webb Space Telescope for the scientific topic, and the crucial aspect of evaluation in educational contexts as the non-scientific topic.
More details can be found on: https://astro4edu.org/shaw-iau/
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