Lines of research: Exoplanetary Systems & Solar System (SEYSS)
Exoplanetary Systems & Solar System (SEYSS)
The area of planetary and solar systems involves several research groups working on Exoplanets, Solar System and Cultural Astronomy.Our main objectives are:
The detection and characterization of giant and rocky planets around nearby stars using the most advanced instruments (CARMENES, ESPRESSO, HARPS Norte y Sur, SONG, LCO, MUSCAT2) and space missions (CoRoT, Kepler K2, CHEOPS, TESS and PLATO). The group is particularly interested in the study of terrestrial planets in the habitable zone of their host stars where water can be in liquid form.
The characterization of the atmospheres of planets to know their structure and composition, both by transits and direct imaging, using ground-based telescopes such as GTC and space missions such as CHEOPS.
Investigate the formation of exoplanet systems by studying the chemical composition of planet host stars, and the dynamical evolution of exoplanets at their early stages of formation.
Study the physical properties of different families of minor bodies of the Solar System (asteroids, comets, trans-neptunian objects, etc.) to understand the origin and evolution of Solar System with GTC and space missions such as OSIRIS-REx.
The study of ancient cosmologies through cultural astronomy and the defense of cultural heritage through the astronomy.
ESPRESSO - Echelle Spectrograph for Rocky Exoplanet and Stable Spectroscopic Observation
ESPRESSO is a fiber-fed, cross-dispersed, high resolution, Echelle spectrograph which can be operated with one or up to 4 Unit Telescopes (UTs) of ESO’s VLT.
ESPRESSO and CARMENES discover two potentially habitable exo-Earths around a star near the Sun
Red dwarfs are the most common stars in the galaxy. In recent years they have become key targets in the search for exoplanets. These stars are usually...
ESPRESSO and CARMENES discover two potentially habitable exo-Earths around a star near the Sun
An international scientific team led by researchers at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has discovered the presence of two planets with Earth-like...
ESPRESSO at VLT. On-sky performance and first results
Context. ESPRESSO is the new high-resolution spectrograph of ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT). It was designed for ultra-high radial-velocity (RV) precision and...
ESPRESSO confirms Proxima b with unprecedented precision
An international team, in which researchers from the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias participated, as well as institutions in Spain, Italy, Portugal...
ESPRESSO confirms the nearest exo-Earth with unprecedented precision
An international team, in which researchers from the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias participated, as well as institutions in Spain, Italy, Portugal...
ESPRESSO has its first light on the four telescopes of the VLT at the same time
This instrument, in which the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has collaborated, has used, for the first time, the combined light of the four...
ESPRESSO high-resolution transmission spectroscopy of WASP-76 b
Aims: We report on ESPRESSO high-resolution transmission spectroscopic observations of two primary transits of the highly irradiated, ultra-hot Jupiter-sized...