Lecture 36: Exoplanets - Planets Around Other Stars
Are there planets around other stars? This lecture reviews the methods\nused to hunt for exoplanets and the results thus far. I will describe\ndirect imaging methods, indirect methods relying on the gravitational\ninfluence of the planet on its parent star, planetary transits in which\na planet blocks part of its parent star's light, and gravitational\nmicrolensing. There has been an explosion in our knowledge of planets\naround other stars, from little or nothing in the early 1990s to more\nthan 400 planets around some 340-odd stars as of today. Recorded live\non 2009 Nov 17 in Room 1005 Smith Laboratory on the Columbus campus of\nThe Ohio State University.