The search for Alien Earths: latest discoveries and adventures Lise Meitner Lectures with astrophysicist Prof. Dr. Lisa Kaltenegger
On 19 September, astrophysicist Lisa Kaltenegger will be a guest at Technische Universität Braunschweig as part of the Lise Meitner Lectures. Professor Kaltenegger is one of the world’s leading researchers in the search for habitable planets outside our solar system. The lecture series is organised annually by the German Physical Society (DPG) and the Austrian Physical Society (ÖPG) and brings together outstanding female physicists to talk about their profession and research.
Prof. Dr. Lisa Kaltenegger is from Austria and works at the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University (NY, USA). Her research analyses the fundamental habitability of an exoplanet, taking into account the mass and evolutionary state of the star, the planet’s orbit and its internal evolution. On the other hand, Prof. Kaltenegger is also trying to find out how the latest astronomical observations can be used to determine the suitability of a planet for life, and whether there might even be signatures of life on exoplanets. With this research, Prof. Kaltenegger is also supporting the search for the biochemical processes that led to life on Earth.
About Lisa Kaltenegger
Prof. Lisa Kaltenegger is an award-winning astrophysicist and astrobiologist, founding director of the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University, professor of astronomy, and author of ‘Alien Earths: The Search for New Planets and Extraterrestrial Life’.
Lisa Kaltenegger is a pioneer and world-leading expert in the modelling of habitable worlds and their light fingerprints. She has spent the last decade finding new ways to detect life in the cosmos, working with NASA and ESA, from Austria to the Netherlands, USA, Germany and now at Cornell University. Prof. Kaltenegger is the author of more than 100 peer-reviewed scientific publications.
Her international honours include the IAU General Assembly Lecture in Hawaii, the Heinz Meier Leibnitz Prize for Physics in Germany, the Doppler Prize for Innovation in Science in Austria, and the Barry Jones Inauguration Prize from the Royal Astrobiology Society and the Open University in the UK. Her 2017 scientific article on ‘How to Characterise Habitable Worlds and Signs of Life’ was selected by Annual Reviews as part of a collection celebrating pioneering female scientists.
About the Lise Meitner Lectures
The Lise Meitner Lectures have been organised by the German Physical Society (DPG) and the Austrian Physical Society (ÖPG) since 2008 as a series of lectures in honour of the researcher Lise Meitner. In 1939, she provided the first physical-theoretical explanation of nuclear fission. Outstanding female scientists from around the world present their research and careers to a wide audience. A special focus is placed on schoolchildren in order to encourage their curiosity about science.