6:00 p.m. Discovery Stations in the museum

6:30 p.m. Special theater presentation in the Lockheed Martin Imax Theater: Mr. Wizard's The Invisible Planet

7:00 p.m. Meet the Lecturer

7:30 p.m. Lecture

Fewer and fewer planets in our Solar System have been found to be viable for life, although we are still looking. But what about the more than 300 “exoplanets” beyond our Solar System that have now been discovered? What are these exoplanets are made of, and do any of them have conditions to support life? Dr. Sara Seager, who holds the Ellen Swallow Richards Associate Professorship in Planetary Science at MIT, will discuss the race to discover an exoplanet reminiscent of Earth.

Dr. Seager holds a BS in math and physics from the University of Toronto and a Ph.D from Harvard University. Her research focuses on theoretical models of atmospheres and interiors of all kinds of exoplanets. She has introduced many new ideas to the field of exoplanet characterization, including work that led to the first detection of an exoplanet atmosphere. She is the 2007 recipient of the American Astronomical Society’s Helen B. Warner Prize.

The Exploring Space Lectures are made possible by the generous support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Aerojet.