Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars other than our Sun. Over 6,000 exoplanets are known, but only a small handful of them have been directly imaged. Taking these photos pushes the limits of our technology, requiring the largest telescopes, advanced optics, and complex data analysis in order to separate the faint signal of the exoplanet from the overwhelming glare of the star it orbits. In this lecture Dr Nicholas Nasedkin will discuss how we make these observations, and how we use them to learn about the atmospheres and formation of these distant worlds.
The speaker: Dr Nicholas Evert Nasedkin (photo above) is a Research Fellow in physics at Trinity College Dublin.
Main image: Actual image of the HR 8799 exoplanetary system, which Dr Nasedkin will refer to in his talk.
Where and when: UCC’s Ashley Cummins building (formerly known as Civil Engineering, near College Road entrance to the main campus). 8 pm, Monday 12th January 2026. Please arrive 10 minutes early – or earlier if you wish to join our Club. This is a public lecture, all welcome. For UCC map go to Calendar