Updated 2024 July 8

BAA meetings

Exoplanet Observation and Analysis – the way forward., 2024 October 5
Provisional agenda
– Analysis of transits using HOPS. How to get the best from your observations, Martin Crow
– Exoplanetpie, Pieter Vulysteke
Exoplanet pie is a software package in development which allows data to be downloaded from multiple sources and transit timing variations to be analysed to detect for example; decaying orbits, cyclical changes suggesting additional planets. Etc. This will considerably advance our ability to contribute to exoplanet science. A tutorial will be a key part of the meeting mentioned below. More to come in the next issue.
– The Habitable Zone. On-line and off-line analysis, Speaker(s) to be confirmed

Other organisations’ meetings

The Interstellar Research Group (IRG) 8^th Interstellar Symposium 
IRG’s 8th Interstellar Symposium, in collaboration with the International Academy of Astronautics and Breakthrough Initiatives, will take place July 10 – 13, 2023 (with pre-symposium seminars taking place) in Montreal, QC, Canada at McGill University. This symposium will feature many of the leading voices in space exploration, culture, and more.

COSPAR-2024-B1.2: Unveiling planet formation and how it connects small bodies, planets, circumstellar disks, and stars. 2024 July 13-21, Busan, Republic of Korea
The path of planet formation starts from the interstellar medium and leads to the great diversity of planetary bodies that we observe in the Solar System and among exoplanets. Stars and their circumstellar disks inherit their composition from the interstellar medium and set the chemical and physical stage for the birth of planetary bodies. The interactions between the different components of forming planetary systems and their surrounding environment shape the direction of planet formation.

Towards Other Earths III: The Planet-Star connection, 17-21 July 2023, Porto, Portugal
Planetary systems result from the synergy between the stars and the planets they host. It can be convenient, at first, to consider them in isolation, but the links between them affect all aspects of exoplanetary sciences. Stars can be a hurdle to exoplanetary sciences. The precision and accuracy of our knowledge of stellar parameters is often a major driver for the precision and accuracy of the respective planetary parameters. Stellar activity and its impact on planet detection and characterisation is one of the significant challenges for the next decade. But stars can also be facilitators to exoplanetary sciences. The correlation between stellar metallicity and the frequency of giant planets is well established and the link between stellar and planetary composition is an active topic. In the next few years we also have a lot to learn from the dynamical interactions between stars and planets.

2023 July 24-28 Sagan Summer Hybrid Workshop
Characterising Exoplanet Atmospheres: The Next Twenty Years
Observations of an exoplanet’s atmosphere provide the best hope for distinguishing the makeup of its outer layers, and the only hope for understanding the interplay between formation, natal composition, chemical and disequilibrium processes, and dynamics & circulation. The field is entering a revolution in our understanding of exoplanet atmospheres thanks to measurements from the ground, from space, and particularly from the new JWST – the superlative facility for exoplanet studies. In the longer term, such observations will also be essential for seeking signs of biosignature gasses in nearby exoplanets using future, next-generation observatories.

This year’s workshop will cover theoretical modelling, interpretation, and observations of exoplanets using a variety of telescopes, techniques, and hands-on exercises, presented by leading experts in the field.

Are We a Unique Species on a Unique Planet or are we just the ordinary Galactic standard?. 2024 July 30 – August 2, Copenhagen, Denmark
Homo sapiens may be the only species in the entire Galaxy with an intelligence advanced enough to understand how it all arose and evolved. But we may also be so dumb that we just don’t understand that the universe is already teaming with life everywhere, similar or very different from ourselves. Each of the scenarios would be equally fascinating, and the sign of a road towards a meaningful answer has never been closer than it is today. We are lucky to have convinced world-leading experts to come to Copenhagen to discuss the issue with us during four intense conference days.

07-13 November 2022 Forming and Exploring Habitable Worlds
Forming and Exploring Habitable Worlds was a multi-discipline four to five day international meeting which took place in Edinburgh, UK.

Europlanet Science Congress, 2024 September 8-13, Henry Ford Building, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany

The intention of the Europlanet Science Congress 2024 is to cover a broad area of science topics related to planetary science and planetary missions.

Included as part of the “Missions, Instrumentation, Techniques, Modelling (MITM)” and “Exoplanets, Origins of Planetary Systems and Astrobiology” programmes: “Future and current instruments to detect and characterise extrasolar planets and their environment, EPSC 2024, MITM8”.

First European Interstellar Symposium 2024 December 2-5, European Convention Center, Luxembourg
The University of Luxembourg’s First European Interstellar Symposium will take place in December 2024, with the IRG’s input and guidance. The Symposium and an Interstellar Art Show will be held at the European Convention Center in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.