Detection and Characterization of Nearby Exoplanets - II

这项计划的长期目标是寻找最近的宜居类地行星，并探测其大气层，以确定其化学成分;这是我们寻求太阳系外生命的关键垫脚石。我打算通过部署三个新的最先进的天文仪器在这一令人兴奋的奋进中发挥关键作用，这些仪器将在本十年结束时开始运作，两个在地面上，一个在詹姆斯韦伯太空望远镜（JWST）上。这些仪器将用于启动长期的全天计划，致力于搜索附近的可居住世界并对其进行详细研究，特别是确定其大气层的主要成分，以评估其承载生命的能力。 我的研究活动是双重的。我致力于发展最先进的天文仪器，专门用于探测和描述系外行星。 我还积极参与各种各样的观测计划，所有这些计划都致力于搜索/研究系外行星，包括它们的宿主星星。这项任务涉及使用各种地面和空间仪器、望远镜和观测技术。我的研究计划的重点是一类特殊的类地系外行星，它们恰好在所谓的可居住区（HZ）轨道上运行，即星星周围的区域，温度足以维持行星表面的液态水。这些行星可能有适合生命生存的条件。 我是两个国际项目的共同首席研究员，专注于红外测速仪仪器的开发（北部的SPIRou;南部的NIRPS），这两个项目都是为了探测附近低质量恒星周围的小型岩石行星而优化的。在我的领导下，这两个项目都在加拿大的大力（约50%）财政捐助下顺利进行。从2018年开始，SPIRou和NIRPS将在五年内分配至少1000个夜晚进行两次主要的系外行星调查：一次侧重于寻找最近的可居住世界，另一次侧重于对数百个凌日系统进行关键的质量测量。我还将处于领导地位，通过凌日光谱学使用JWST探测这些宜居星球的大气层，这是一种用于恢复系外行星大气层光谱的强大技术。我是近红外成像仪和无狭缝光谱仪的首席研究员，这是一种由美国制造的JWST仪器，具有专门为高精度凌日光谱设计的模式。从2019年春天开始，我和我的团队将启动一个长达200小时的保证时间观测计划，重点关注几种类型系外行星的大气特征，包括一些附近的过境岩石系统。这些计划有望在我的团队、加拿大和世界各地实现突破性的发现。

The long-term objective of this proposal is to find the nearest habitable terrestrial planets and probe their atmosphere to determine their chemical composition; this is a key stepping-stone in our quest for life outside the Solar System. I intend to play a pivotal role in this exciting endeavor through the deployment of three new state-of-the-art astronomical instruments whose operation will be initiated towards the end of this decade, two on the ground and one on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). These instruments will be used to initiate long-term, all-sky programs dedicated to searching nearby habitable worlds and study them in detail, in particular to determine the main constituents of their atmosphere to assess their ability to harbor life. My research activities are twofold. I contribute to the development of state-of-the-art astronomical instruments specialized for the detection and characterization of exoplanets. I also actively participate in a wide variety of observational programs all dedicated to searching/studying exoplanets including their host star. This task involves the use of a variety of instruments, telescopes and observing techniques both ground- and space-based. The focus of my research program is on a special class of terrestrial exoplanets that happen to orbit in the so-called habitable zone (HZ), i.e. the region around a star that is temperate enough to sustain liquid water on the surface of the planet. Those planets may have the right conditions for life to strive. I am co-principal investigator of two international projects focused on the development of infrared velocimeter instruments (SPIRou in the north; NIRPS in the south) both optimized for detecting small rocky planets around nearby low-mass stars. Both projects are well underway with a strong (~50%) financial contribution from Canada under my leadership. Starting in 2018, both SPIRou and NIRPS will be allocated at least 1000 nights over five years to conduct two major exoplanet surveys: one focused on finding the closest habitable worlds and the other to perform crucial mass measurements of several 100s transiting systems. I will also be in a leadership position to probe the atmosphere of those habitable words using JWST through transit spectroscopy, a powerful technique used to recover the spectrum of an exoplanet atmosphere. I am principal investigator of the Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph, the Canadian-built JWST instrument that features a mode specifically designed for high-precision transit spectroscopy. Starting in the spring of 2019, my team and I will initiate a 200-hr long Guaranteed Time Observations program focused on atmospheric characterization of several types of exoplanets, including a few nearby transiting rocky systems. These programs promise to enable groundbreaking discoveries within my team, in Canada and all over the world.