Extrasolar Planets
Earth As An Exoplanet 
The search for habitable and inhabited environments beyond our planet commonly focuses on analogs to Earth, especially in the case of exoplanets. Observations from ground-based facilities, satellites, and spacecraft have yielded a rich collection of data that can be used to effectively view a distant Earth within the context of exoplanet characterization.
Investigating Planet Formation and Evolutionary Processes with Short-Period Exoplanets
From wispy gas giants on the verge of disruption to tiny rocky bodies already falling apart, short-period exoplanets pose a severe puzzle to theories of planet formation and orbital evolution.
Formation of Terrestrial Planets
The past decade has seen major progress in our understanding of terrestrial planet formation. Yet key questions remain.
Clear and Cloudy Exoplanet Forecasts for JWST
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will measure exoplanet transmission and eclipse spectroscopy at un-precedented precisions to better understand planet structure, dynamics, chemistry and formation.
The Value Of Astrometry For Exoplanet Science
Exoplanets mass measurements will be a critical next step to assess the habitability of Earth-like planets: a key aspect of the 2020 vision in the previous decadal survey and also central to NASA's strategic priorities.
Key Technology Challenges for the Study of Exoplanets and the Search for Habitable Worlds
In support of the National Acadamies' Exoplanet Science Strategy, this whitepaper outlines key technology challenges for studying the diversity of worlds in the Galaxy and in searching for habitable planets.
New Instrument EXPRES Ready to Search for Earth-like Planets
Astronomers at Yale University, in collaboration with Lowell Observatory, are embarking on a search that will answer one of the oldest questions in astronomy: Are there planets similar to Earth orbiting other stars?
EarthFinder: A Precise Radial Velocity Probe Mission Concept For the Detection of Earth-Mass Planets Orbiting Sun-like Stars
EarthFinder is a Probe Mission concept selected for study by NASA for input to the 2020 astronomy decadal survey.
15 New Planets Confirmed Around Cool Dwarf Stars
Scientists report the existence of 15 new planets -- including one 'super-Earth' that could harbor liquid water -- orbiting small, cool stars near our solar system.
Exoplanetary Atmosphere Target Selection in the Era of Comparative Planetology
Large-scale transit surveys such as NGTS, TESS and PLATO promise to deliver a wealth of potential targets for follow-up transmission spectroscopy study.
Water And The Interior Structure Of Terrestrial Planets And Icy Bodies
Water content and the internal evolution of terrestrial planets and icy bodies are closely linked. The distribution of water in planetary systems is controlled by the temperature structure in the protoplanetary disk and dynamics and migration of planetesimals and planetary embryos.
Carbon Cycling and Habitability of Earth-size Stagnant Lid Planets
Models of thermal evolution, crustal production, and CO2 cycling are used to constrain the prospects for habitability of rocky planets, with Earth-like size and composition, in the stagnant lid regime.
Two Super-Earths Orbit Star K2-18
New research using data collected by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has revealed that a little-known exoplanet called K2-18b could well be a scaled-up version of Earth. Just as exciting, the same researchers also discovered for the first time that the planet has a neighbor.
Secondary Atmospheres On HD 219134 b and c
We analyze the interiors of HD~219134~b and c, which are among the coolest super Earths detected thus far. Without using spectroscopic measurements, we aim at constraining if the possible atmospheres are hydrogen-rich or hydrogen-poor.
Influence of XUV Irradiation from Sgr A* on Planetary Habitability and Occurrence of Panspermia near the Galactic Center
Black holes growing via the accretion of gas emit radiation that can photoevaporate the atmospheres of nearby planets.
Whole Planet Coupling Between Climate, Mantle, and Core: Implications for Evolution of Rocky Planets
Earth's climate, mantle, and core interact over geologic timescales.
Planet Detectability in the Alpha Centauri System
We use more than a decade of radial velocity measurements for α Cen A, B, and Proxima Centauri from HARPS, CHIRON, and UVES to identify the Msini and orbital periods of planets that could have been detected if they existed.
Planet-Planet Occultations in TRAPPIST-1 and Other Exoplanet Systems
We explore the occurrence and detectability of planet-planet occultations (PPOs) in exoplanet systems. These are events during which a planet occults the disk of another planet in the same system, imparting a small photometric signal as its thermal or reflected light is blocked.
Closest Temperate World Orbiting A Quiet Star Discovered
A team working with ESO's High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) at the La Silla Observatory in Chile has found that the red dwarf star Ross 128 is orbited by a low-mass exoplanet every 9.9 days.
Validation of Small Kepler Transiting Planet Candidates In Or Near The Habitable Zone
A main goal of NASA's Kepler Mission is to establish the frequency of potentially habitable Earth-size planets (eta Earth).
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