Multi-disciplinary Workshop: Modeling the Magnetic Interactions between Stars and Planets

William Marsh Rice University, Houston TX

Investigators

Abstract

This proposal is for a workshop directly related to the work being performed through an existing INSPIRE (Integrated NSF Support Promoting Interdisciplinary Research and Education) award entitled "Modeling the Magnetic Interactions between Stars and Planets". Currently, more than 1800 confirmed planetary systems beyond our solar system (i.e. extrasolar planets or exoplanets) have been discovered through ground and space-based astronomical techniques, with an additional 3600 candidate systems yet to be confirmed. These recent discoveries have resulted in dramatic growth in research related to the study of exoplanets with the ultimate objective being the discovery and characterization of habitable Earth-sized systems. The primary goal of the related INSPIRE project is to improve our understanding of the interactions between stars and their planets. The proposed interdisciplinary and international workshop will be held at the PIs institution, Rice University, to facilitate necessary discussions on the roles that magnetic fields play in the habitability of planets other than Earth. The proposed workshop will enhance the work being performed by the INSPIRE project to apply techniques and methods drawn from the space physics community to the traditionally astrophysical research area of exoplanets. The project team has significant expertise in computational modeling of the magnetospheres of rocky planets like the Earth and gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn. They will combine their magnetospheric code with available magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) models of the heliosphere in order to model interactions of the solar wind with planetary magnetospheres. A key aspect of the project is to apply these combined models to a much broader class of star-planet interactions by scaling the models to simulate a wide range of stellar parameters. This interdisciplinary workshop will bring together solar and astro-physicists for unique discussions. These types of in person collaborations are essential for evolving the science and for growing the avenues of communication between the two disciplines. The proposed workshop is directly relevant to the INSPIRE project. It is ideally held at Rice University and led by the PI who is a world leader in this field.