Advancing New Frontiers

Exoplanet science at the Carnegie Observatories exists at an especially exciting nexus of theoretical astrophysics, observational astronomy, and instrument development.

Our theorists are predicting novel phenomena, like sub-moons, and explaining mysteries, such as cotton candy-like super-puff planets . Our instrument specialists can take this research and use it to develop new tools to enable our observers to look confirm or advance the original work.

Carnegie has a long history in the exoplanet field going back to its infancy, and the Planet Finder Spectrograph on our Magellan telescopes has played a vital role in finding and confirming the existence of many known exoplanets. Now, the high-resolution near-infrared spectrograph WINERED will help Carnegie astronomers understand the atmospheric compositions of distant worlds.

Recent Exoplanet News

Exoplanet Career Pivot

Carnegie Astronomer Andrew McWilliam