Prof. Sara Seager

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Professor Sara Seager is an astrophysicist and a Professor of Physics, Professor of Planetary Science, and a Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where she holds the Class of 1941 Professor Chair.  She is known for her pioneering research on exoplanets and their atmospheres, having introduced many foundational ideas to the field. She was the Deputy Science Director of the MIT-led NASA Explorer-class mission TESS and was PI of the JPL-MIT CubeSat ASTERIA. She is now at the forefront of the search for the first Earth-like exoplanets and signs of life on them and is pursuing exploration of Venus as a habitable world. For her research Professor Seager was awarded a MacArthur “genius” fellowship, and other accolades including being awarded one of Canada’s highest civilian honors, appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Prelekcja: Exoplanets, Venus, and the Search for Signs of Life beyond Earth

For thousands of years, inspired by the star-filled dark night sky, people have wondered what lies beyond Earth. Today, the search for signs of life is a key motivator in modern-day planetary exploration. The newly launched James Webb Space telescope will enable us to study gases in rocky exoplanet atmospheres, possibly including “biosignature” gases that might be attributed to life.  Closer to home, a now controversial detection of phosphine gas in the Venus atmosphere has reignited studies of Venus, from re-investigation of decades’ old atmosphere anomalies to new laboratory investigations of organic molecules’ stability and chemistry in sulfuric acid (the composition of Venus’ cloud particles). New exoplanet atmosphere discoveries as well as  growing evidence for Venus as a potentially habitable planet give us hope towards make progress on answering the ancient questions about the possibility of life beyond Earth.