Astrobiology of Pluto
with Dr. Michael E. Summers April 25, 2024, at 4 PM Central time 5 PM Eastern time This IRAS webinar is FREE but registration is required. Please register using the link below. If you have questions, contact CJ Love: carolynjlove3@gmail.com |
About the April 25, 2024 webinar:
Astrobiology of Pluto Presentation Overview: Spacecraft exploration of our solar system has revealed at least five subsurface water oceans on planetary moons. Recent investigations suggest that even Pluto may have a habitable subsurface ocean of liquid water. Habitable planets and moons might extend far outside of the classical “Habitable Zone” and subsurface oceans might actually dominate habitable locations in planetary systems. After a nine-year journey, New Horizons also passed its second major science target, reaching the Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth in 2019, the most distant object ever explored up close. Also during its long trek, the spacecraft captured impressive pictures of Jupiter's moons Io, Europa, and Ganymede, and remained healthy as it flew toward the frontier of our solar system at 300,000 miles per year. About the April 25th presenter: Dr. Michael E. Summers is Prof. of Planetary Science and Astronomy at George Mason University. He obtained a B.S. in Physics, Mathematics, and Russian Language from Murray State University, a M.S. in Space Physics from U.T. Dallas, and. Ph.D. in Planetary Science from the California Institute of Technology. His research deals with the atmospheric composition on planets and exoplanets (planets outside of our solar system) and in elucidating the roles that physics, chemistry, and biology play in the evolution of planetary life. He is a science team co-investigator on the NASA/New Horizons mission to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. |
TBD
|
TBD
|