Dr Henrik Melin (STFC James Webb Fellow) – University of Leicester

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is the most advanced and powerful space telescope ever constructed. Its sensitive instruments can sense stars and galaxies, but it can also explore objects within our cosmic backyard – our solar system. One of the most spectacular targets is the aurora (northern lights) of the giant planets – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. They are manifestations of how the planet interacts with its surrounding space environment and this talk will explore how JWST will revolutionise our understanding of these polar light shows.

Dr Philippa J. Mason (Senior Researcher in Planetary Remote Sensing) – Imperial College London

Venus exploration offers unique opportunities to answer fundamental questions about the evolution of terrestrial planets and habitability within our own solar system. Venus is Earth’s closest sibling, geologically; similar in size to the Earth, it has remained active into the present era. EnVision is a Venus orbiter mission that aims to reveal the nature and current state of Venus’ geological evolution and its relationship with the atmosphere, to understand how and why Venus and Earth evolved so differently.

Dr. Shweta Dalal (STFC Fellow) – University of Exeter

We have discovered thousands of planets orbiting around stars other than our Sun and we call them exoplanets. However, we are yet to detect a planet similar to our Earth. These diverse exoplanets are fossils of planet formation and evolution, which is why detecting and characterising them is crucial. This talk will highlight the Terra Hunting Experiment – the most intensive search ever attempted for Earth-like planets around the nearest Sun-like stars.

Journey across the landscape of planets beyond our solar system in a virtual exoplanet tour created by Exeter Exoplanet Theory Group, alongside We the Curious, and VFX company Engine House. Discover hellish worlds engulfed in vast lava flows and exoplanets with deep oceans fraught with gigantic waves.

Displayed from the Graham Ensor Collection, find out about some of the oldest rocks from space – take a look at the building blocks of our solar system (including the largest Lunar meteorite in the UK) and hold a piece of space history.

Visualise and learn about the cosmic phenomena of the northern lights with the University of Leicester’s Planeterella model – prepare to be captivated.