Hannah Wakeford is the Giacconi Fellow at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. Her work focuses on characterizing the atmospheres of exoplanets through observations, primarily with Hubble, and theoretical models of exotic cloud species for hot giant planets.
A GREAT QUEST is underway to discover Earthsize worlds in their stars’ habitable zones. Along the way, astronomers have been surprised to learn that the most typical size of planet in our galaxy is one with no counterpart in our own solar system.
Latest Planetary Radio Appearances
There appear to be more mini-Neptunes (also known as Super Earths) across our galaxy than any other type of planet. Hannah Wakeford wants to learn if some of them support life, and she’s doing this by exploring their skies.