Exoplanets and planetary physics

The study of exoplanets is a rapidly moving field at the forefront of astrophysics. At the OU, we work to find and characterise new exoplanets and study the atmospheres of known planets using space telescopes.

We are members of the SuperWASP, PLATO, Ariel, and RedDot consortia and lead the Dispersed Matter Planet Project (DMPP), which has identified a critical population of rocky exoplanets orbiting bright nearby stars. We use competitively awarded telescope time at international observatories, and have proprietary access to the 10-metre Southern African Large Telescope and our own PIRATE and COAST telescopes.

We work extensively with spectroscopic observations from Hubble and JWST. We use state-of-the-art models to infer the atmospheric composition and structure of transiting planets from ultrahot Jupiters to super Earths.

We collaborate with the OU's planetary science, space instrumentation and astrobiology groups, especially in exoplanet compositions, planetary atmospheres and habitability.

Entry requirements

Minimum 2:1 undergraduate degree (or equivalent). If you are not a UK citizen, you may need to prove your knowledge of English.

Potential research projects

We welcome enquiries from prospective students in the following areas:

• Rocky exoplanet compositions
• A Galactic population model of planets
• Habitability of planets around white dwarf stars
• Mass loss from close-in exoplanets
• Dynamics of multiple exoplanet systems
• Earth analogue exoplanets
• Planet searches around nearby M dwarf stars
• Exoplanet atmosphere observation and modelling

Please also see further opportunities.

Current/recent research projects

• Discovery of close-in planets around nearby stars (DMPP)
• The mass-radius-composition relationships for low mass exoplanets
• The search for exoplanets orbiting the Sun’s stellar neighbours
• Follow-up photometry of transiting exoplanet candidates with the OpenScience Observatories
• False-positive signal in exoplanet transit searches, and application to the PLATO mission
• Measuring the dust properties of Kepler 1520b
• Nearby analogues of Kepler 1520b
• Star-Planet Interactions
• Modelling the atmospheres of exo-Venuses
• Disentangling stellar activity signatures from exoplanet transit spectra

Potential supervisors

• Dr John Barnes
• Dr Jo Barstow
• Professor  Carole Haswell
• Dr Ulrich Kolb
• Professor Andrew Norton

Fees and funding

Some of our research students are funded via the UKRI Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Doctoral Training Partnership; others are self-funded.

For detailed information about fees and funding, visit Fees and studentships.

To see current funded studentship vacancies across all research areas, see Current studentships.

Links

• School of Physical Sciences
• Astronomy Discipline