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Recent studies regarding the habitability, observability, and possible orbital evolution of the indirectly detected exoplanet Proxima b have mostly assumed a planet with $M \sim 1.3$ $M_\oplus$, a rocky composition, and an Earth-like…
The increased brightness temperature of young rocky protoplanets during their magma ocean epoch makes them potentially amenable to atmospheric characterization to distances from the solar system far greater than thermally equilibrated…
One of the most prolific methods of studying exoplanet atmospheres is transmission spectroscopy, which measures the difference between the depth of an exoplanet's transit signal at various wavelengths and attempts to correlate the depth…
The detection of extrasolar planets' atmospheres requires very demanding observations. For planets that can not be spatially separated from their host stars, i.e. the vast majority of planets, the transiting planets are the only ones…
With an orbital distance comparable to that of Saturn in the solar system, \bpic b is the closest (semi-major axis $\simeq$\,9\,au) exoplanet that has been imaged to orbit a star. Thus it offers unique opportunities for detailed studies of…
Understanding the climates of terrestrial exoplanets and the detectability of biosignatures is an inherently interdisciplinary challenge, requiring the integration of insights from Solar System exploration, exoplanet observations and…
We introduce a novel Earth-like planet surface temperature model (ESTM) for habitability studies based on the spatial-temporal distribution of planetary surface temperatures. The ESTM adopts a surface Energy Balance Model complemented by:…
We present the results of a comprehensive numerical simulation of the environment around three exoplanet-host stars (HD 1237, HD 22049, and HD 147513). Our simulations consider one of the latest models currently used for space weather…
We report simultaneous observations of the nearby flare star Proxima Centauri with VLT/UVES and XMM-Newton over three nights in March 2009. Our optical and X-ray observations cover the star's quiescent state, as well as its flaring activity…
Located at the bottom of the main sequence, ultracool dwarf stars are widespread in the solar neighbourhood. Nevertheless, their extremely low luminosity has left their planetary population largely unexplored, and only one of them,…
The advent of high-resolution spectroscopy as a method for exoplanet atmospheric characterization has expanded our capability to study non-transiting planets, increasing the number of planets accessible for observation. Many of the most…
The combination of high-contrast imaging and high-dispersion spectroscopy, which has successfully been used to detect the atmosphere of a giant planet, is one of the most promising potential probes of the atmosphere of Earth-size worlds.…
We apply a mathematical model for photosynthesis to quantitatively assess the habitability of a hypothetical planet orbiting Proxima Centauri, inside the so called habitability zone. Results suggest significant viability for primary…
Upcoming telescopes such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), or the Extremely Large Telescope (ELTs), may soon be able to characterize, through transmission, emission or reflection spectroscopy, the atmospheres of rocky exoplanets…
Direct detection, also known as direct imaging, is a method for discovering and characterizing the atmospheres of planets at intermediate and wide separations. It is the only means of obtaining spectra of non-transiting exoplanets.…
We analyze new/archival VLT/NaCo and Gemini/NICI high-contrast imaging of the young, self-luminous planet $\beta$ Pictoris b in seven near-to-mid IR photometric filters, using advanced image processing methods to achieve high…
Future instruments like NIRCam and MIRI on JWST or METIS at the ELT will be able to image exoplanets that are too faint for current direct imaging instruments. Evolutionary models predicting the planetary intrinsic luminosity as a function…
We use the Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model (GCM) dynamical core, in conjunction with a Newtonian relaxation scheme that relaxes to a gray, analytical solution of the radiative transfer equation, to simulate a…
With a scheduled launch in October 2018, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is expected to revolutionise the field of atmospheric characterization of exoplanets. The broad wavelength coverage and high sensitivity of its instruments will…
The critical first step in the search for life on exoplanets over the next decade is to determine whether rocky planets transiting small M-dwarf stars possess atmospheres and, if so, what processes sculpt them over time. Because of its…