Preparing for Roman
As a postdoctoral researcher working with Dr. Ty Robinson as part of the HabLab, I study how giant exoplanets will appear in reflected light and thermal emission to the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s Coronagraph Instrument (CGI). My work uses 1D climate and radiative-transfer models to predict the reflected-light spectra and phase-dependent brightness of these planets under a range of atmospheric conditions. These models help define the expected signals that CGI will detect, and they provide theoretical context for interpreting future observations.
By linking models of atmospheric chemistry, clouds, and scattering to the instrument’s performance capabilities, I aim to understand how factors like metallicity, cloud composition, and temperature structure influence the optical appearance of giant exoplanets. These studies not only support the success of Roman’s exoplanet program, but also inform strategies for future direct-imaging missions—especially NASA’s upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory, which will build upon Roman’s technology to one day image Earth-like worlds.
My research on Saturn’s upper atmosphere uses stellar occultation data from the Cassini mission to investigate the structure, composition, and energy balance of the planet’s mesosphere and thermosphere. By analyzing how starlight is absorbed and refracted as it passes through Saturn’s atmosphere, I derived one of the first 2D maps of hydrocarbon distributions at these altitudes, revealing key patterns in temperature, chemistry, and circulation.
These results provide new insight into the coupling between Saturn’s middle and upper atmosphere, illuminating how photochemical products, dynamics, and external energy sources shape its thermal structure. This work also offers an important benchmark for understanding the physics of giant planet upper atmospheres more broadly—insights that extend naturally to exoplanetary contexts, where remote sensing of atmospheric composition and energy balance faces similar challenges.
By connecting detailed analysis of Saturn’s environment to the study of distant worlds, this research underscores the value of our solar system giants as natural laboratories for understanding the fundamental processes governing planetary atmospheres across the galaxy.
Saturn's Upper Atmosphere
