Simon Albrecht obtains permanent employment at IFA
With effect from 1 March has been appointed associate professor at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University
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Simon's main line of work will be exotic exoplanets as previously. In 2015 he recieved a grant of DKK 5.4 million from the Sapere Aude programme for research into properties of stellar and planetary orbits.
The work in Simon Albrecht's exoplanet group focuses on an observational approach to learn about the architecture of star-planet systems, and atmospheres of extra solar planets. The group is using space based and ground based telescopes to find and characterize new exoplanets. For studying exoplanet atmospheres they rely on spectroscopic observations which can detect signatures of atoms and molecules.
The results of the study will help to choose between competing theories on the formation and development of stars and planets. This will eventually contribute to an understanding of how life could develop, because the physical conditions in the different stellar systems are very different and not all of them meet the requirements that are expected to apply for life to exist.