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The Future of Extrasolar Planet Detection and
Characterization Gabriela Mallen-Ornelas Harvard-Smithsonian CfA abstract The discovery of giant extrasolar planets in the mid-1990's using radial velocity techniques heralded a new era in the study of planet formation. To date, more than 100 planetary systems have been detected around sun-like stars, and the surprising variety in the characteristics of these systems has shown that planetary systems can be radically different from our own. A dramatic step forward in the characterization of individual extrasolar planets took place in 1999 with the discovery of transits of the extrasolar planet HD209458b, the measurement of its unexpectedly-large radius, and the subsequent detections of sodium in its atmosphere and the presence of an exosphere. The upcoming decade promises to bring many exciting discoveries as a result of improvements in instrumentation, the refinement of new techniques (such as the transit search technique), and the launch of several space observatories (such as Kepler, Corot, Eddington, and SIM) dedicated to the study of extrasolar planets. |