02/13/2023
By Joanne Gagnon-Ketchen

Physics Colloquium, Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 4 p.m. in Olsen 102.
James Cho, Brandeis University, will give a talk on "Storms on Exoplanets"

ABSTRACT:
‘Exoplanets’ is an exciting, new field of astrophysics. The field has grown rapidly since the first discovery of an exoplanet around a Sun-like star, just over 20 years ago – for which the Nobel prize in physics was awarded recently. With many thousands of exoplanets now detected, accurate characterization of their atmospheres – in particular, their composition, weather, and climate – has become the next critical step in understanding them. The characterization is not only crucial for understanding the current observations, it is crucial for ultimately assessing whether the planet can harbor life. In this talk, how physics and mathematics is used to address these problems, as well as what we do understand so far, are presented. The presentation will focus on the structure and evolution of ‘exo-storms’ and the variability they induce that may be observable.

BIOGRAPHY:
James Cho is a Professor of Physics and of Mathematics (courtesy appointment) at Brandeis University. Before arriving at Brandeis in 2022, he was a Research Scientist at the Flatiron Institute of the Simons Foundation and a professor at Queen Mary University of London. He has also held Visiting Scholar appointments at Oxford, Harvard, and Princeton Universities. His research interests include astrophysical-geophysical fluid dynamics, exoplanets, climate, turbulence, numerical methods, and mathematical physics. Currently, he works on theoretical modeling of exoplanets, neutron stars, and topological analysis of complex data. He has served as a technical consultant to industry and U.S. government agencies, a committee member of the American Physical Society Topical Group on the Physics of Climate, and a Secretary of Planetary Science of the European Geosciences Union.