Searching for Earth 2.0 from Western Colorado
What would it be like to live on another planet? Are there any planets out there similar to Earth? If so, how common are they? If you’ve pondered these questions, scientists are now beginning to find answers. Join us to learn how CMU astronomy students are using local telescopes to help discover and measure properties of extrasolar planets (‘exoplanets’), some of which are potentially habitable Earth-size planets in our galactic neighborhood.
Catherine Whiting is an Assistant Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Colorado Mesa University. Her students use telescopes at the Grand Mesa Observatory in Whitewater, CO as part of a network of ground-based astronomers helping to confirm the existence of exoplanet candidates whose host stars have been ‘flagged’ by telescopes such as the Transiting Exoplanet Satellite Survey (TESS) as potentially having at least one orbiting planet. Catherine received a B.S. in physics, astronomy, and mathematics, an M.S. in astronomy, and a Ph.D. in theoretical physics, all from the University of Iowa.
