Exoplanets, near and far, small and rare, large and plenty?
Schedule
Wed Apr 15 2026 at 12:15 pm to 01:00 pm
UTC+02:00Location
UiO : Realfagsbiblioteket | Oslo, OS
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Welcome to the talk "Exoplanets, near and far, small and rare, large and plenty?" by Stephanie Werner, Professor at Centre for Planetary Habitability, University of Oslo. Very few exoplanets have been seen directly. The majority is discovered by observing the host star, which gets wobbled (radial velocity method) or eclipsed (transit method) by the exoplanet, providing indirect mass or size measurements. The growing number of exoplanets, close to 8000 by now (exoplanet.eu), reveals the unexpected diversity of planet sizes and masses and planet types not known from the solar system before. Exoplanets can orbit one star, two stars or occasional freely-float orbiting no star. Cautioning for observational bias, the known planetary systems are more compact than the solar system, nevertheless, some can be found in the habitable zone of their host star provoking the question: Are we alone?
Stephanie C. Werner is a planetary scientist and geophysicist with a PhD from Freie Universität Berlin (Germany). Her research interest is Comparative Planetology. Currently Dr. Werner leads the Centre for Planetary Habitability, a centre of excellence at the University of Oslo, that is to investigate how have Earth’s physical and chemical attributes, and thus our planet’s proclivity for life, evolved, and how can we recognize distant worlds around other stars that have been or could be habitable?
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About GeoWednesday
Once a month, researchers at the Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo, will tell about their research and introduce the geociences to a wide audience, from first-year undergraduates, colleagues to interested in general. It is possible to ask questions after the lectures.
Coffee/tea are served. Everyone is welcome!
The lectures are streamed. You can watch the stream at Realfagsbiblioteket YouTube-channel.
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Where is it happening?
UiO : Realfagsbiblioteket, Moltke Moes vei 35,Oslo, NorwayEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
