From 16 to 20 September 2024, the Exohost project summer school "Planet Formation and Populations" will take place in Tõravere. The summer school will focus on planet formation and evolution, as well as planetary system populations.
The summer school is aimed at doctoral students and advanced master's students researching exoplanets. Leading scientists from around the world will discuss the theoretical aspects of exoplanets and the confirmation of predictions with observational data.
"Studying planet formation and populations helps us understand how planetary systems, including our own, come into being and evolve over time. Comparing various planetary systems enhances our knowledge of planetary science and contributes to our understanding of star and planetary system formation, as planet formation is closely linked to the life cycles of stars", introduced Associate Professor Anna Aret, Head of the Tartu Observatory´s Stellar Physics Department and Principal Investigator of the EXOHOST project, as she highlighted the importance of the summer school.
"Understanding planetary evolution also provides clues about the origins of life, as it helps us identify the environmental conditions necessary for life to develop and whether these conditions might exist on other planets. For example, current observational capabilities suggest that habitable planets are more likely to be found around Sun-like or cooler stars", added Junior Researcher Alexandra Lehtmets, who is studying the evaporation of planets around hot starts in the University of Tartu.
Read more on the summer school website.
EXOHOST is an Horizon Europe Twinning project that aims to strengthen the quality of stellar physics research at Tartu Observatory to become a center of excellence for exoplanet research.
The summer school is financed by the the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101079231 (EXOHOST), and from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) under the UK government’s Horizon Europe funding guarantee (grant number 10051045).