NOIRLab - The Case of the Missing Earths

Finding Earth-sized planets around other stars is a very exciting area of astronomical research. Recently a team lead by Dr. Katie Lester followed up data from the TESS satellite using the International Gemini Observatory and the WIYN 3.5 meter telescope at Kitt Peak. They found that we may be missing many Earth-sized worlds orbiting binary stars. This podcast explores how they reached this interesting conclusion and how we may go about finding these worlds in the future.   Bio: Rob Sparks is in the Communications, Education and Engagement group at NSF’s NOIRLab.  Katie Lester is a postdoc at NASA Ames Research Center in California. She studies binary star systems and how they affect planet formation.   Links: https://noirlab.edu/public/news/noirlab2102/ NOIRLab social media channels can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/NOIRLabAstro https://twitter.com/NOIRLabAstro https://www.instagram.com/noirlabastro/ https://www.youtube.com/noirlabastro   We've added a new way to donate to 365 Days of Astronomy to support editing, hosting, and production costs. Just visit: https://www.patreon.com/365DaysOfAstronomy and donate as much as you can! Share the podcast with your friends and send the Patreon link to them too! Every bit helps! Thank you! ------------------------------------ Do go visit http://astrogear.spreadshirt.com/ for cool Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest t-shirts, coffee mugs and other awesomeness! http://cosmoquest.org/Donate This show is made possible through your donations. Thank you! (Haven't donated? It's not too late! Just click!) The 365 Days of Astronomy Podcast is produced by Astrosphere New Media. http://www.astrosphere.org/ Visit us on the web at 365DaysOfAstronomy.org or email us at [email protected].