Thomas G. Beatty

About

I grew up in Connecticut, outside of New York City, and attended Phillips Exeter Academy for high school. I have a Bachelor's in Astronomy and Astrophysics from Harvard University, a Master's in Physics from MIT, and both a Master's and Ph.D. in Astronomy from the Ohio State University.

As a graduate student at the Ohio State University under Scott Gaudi, I helped to begin the KELT survey for transiting planets. This led to us discovering the first nine KELT planets (some of which had nice write-ups in the New York Times, Scientific American, and on Space.com).

I am currently an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin's Department of Astronomy.

I am currently a member of the research faculty at University of Arizona as an assistant astronomer. At UA I'm a member of the NIRCam team, helping to prepare for the launch of JWST in 2021. Specifically, I'm working on how to use NIRCam to observe the atmospheres of exoplanets during the "first light" observations from JWST.

Previously, I was an assistant research professor at the University of Arizona, where I was an insrument scientist on the NIRCam team, helping to prepare for the launch of JWST. Specifically, I worked on how to use NIRCam to observe the atmospheres of exoplanets during the "first light" observations from JWST.

Outside of astronomy, I enjoy skiing, sailing, rowing, and I have a general interest in history and science policy.

Research

My research focuses on observational studies of transiting exoplanets, from detection through to follow-up characterization of their atmospheres. In the next ten to twenty years it will be possible to detect and characterize an Earth-like planet with life, and the immediate goal of my research is to lay the groundwork for this event. I do this by developing and using innovative ground- and space-based techniques to observe giant exoplanets now, both to understand their atmospheres, and to develop and refine observing techniques for use with more challenging, smaller, targets.

I use a range of telescopes on the ground and space. I have observed with the relatively small (0.7m) MINERVA telescopes all the way up to the 8m Large Binocular Telescope, and with both the Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes.

In graduate school, I was one of the primary architects of the KELT survey for transiting exoplanets. I was responsible for designing the planet search pipeline, and I began, and then ran, the survey's daily operations. This led to us discovering the first nine KELT planets, and I remain involved as a member of the core science team.

Since then, I have become focused on atmospheric studies of hot Jupiters and transiting brown dwarfs, often using the KELT planets. In particular, I work to interrelate the observed spectra of field brown dwarfs, transiting brown dwarfs, and hot Jupiters to better understand the roles played by stellar irradiation and surface gravity in setting atmospheric properties.

Recent Publications

• The Detectability of Nightside City Lights on Exoplanets


• The TESS Phase Curve of KELT-1b Suggests a High Dayside Albedo


• Spitzer Phase Curves of KELT-1b and the Signatures of Nightside Clouds in Thermal Phase Observations


• A Significant Overluminosity in the Transiting Brown Dwarf CWW 89Ab


• Evidence for Atmospheric Cold-trap Processes in the Non-inverted Emission Spectrum of Kepler-13Ab Using HST/WFC3


• The Broadband and Spectrally-Resolved H-band Eclipse of KELT-1b and the Role of Surface Gravity in Stratospheric Inversions in Hot Jupiters

CV

Curriculum Vitae

Publication List

Contact

• Email: tgbeatty@wisc.edu
• Phone: (608) 262-8687
• Office: Sterling Hall Rm. 5504

Elements

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    print 'Iteration ' + i;
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    i++;
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