Exoplanets and the Search for Life

Joyce Guzik explores the explosion of exoplanet discoveries over the past two decades. What are the prospects for detecting life on planets orbiting other stars? How might we recognize signs of biology—or even technology—from afar? What types of stars are most likely to host life-friendly planets, and could civilizations evolve into something entirely post-biological? Guzik will also touch on current and future observational efforts, including the James Webb Space Telescope and space missions recommended by the National Academy of Sciences Decadal Survey.

This program is aimed at children 8+.
Planetarium programs not recommended for children 4 and under.
Admission: $8/adult; $6/child

About the Presenter:

Joyce Guzik is a Laboratory Fellow in the X-Theoretical Design division at Los Alamos National Laboratory.  She received her Ph.D. in astrophysics at Iowa State University in 1988.  In addition to her programmatic work at LANL, during the last number of years she has been working on analysis and modeling of pulsating variable stars observed using the NASA Kepler and TESS spacecraft.