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Cavendish Astrophysics

 

Biography

Didier Queloz is Professor of Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory and Geneva University. He is at the origin of the exoplanet revolution in astrophysics. Until recently, the Solar System has provided us with the only basis for our knowledge of planets and life in the universe. In 1995 Prof Queloz has dramatically changed this view with the discovery he made with Michel Mayor of the first giant planet outside the solar system. This seminal discovery has spawned a real revolution in astronomy both in terms of new instrumentation and understanding of planet formation and evolution.

Over the next 25 years, Didier Queloz scientific contributions have essentially been to make progress in detection and measurement capabilities of exoplanet systems with the goal to retrieve information on their physical structure to better understand their formation and evolution by comparison with our solar system. More recently he is directing his activity to the detection of Earth like planets and Universal life. In the course of his career he developed astronomical equipments, new observational approaches and detection algorithms. He participated and conducted programs leading to the detection of hundred planets, include breakthrough results. He participated to numerous documentaries movies, articles TV and radio interviews to share excitement and promote interest for science in general and particularly topics 

In 2013 he become professor at Cambridge University where he is leading  a comprehensive research program with the goal of making further progress in our understanding of their formation, structure, and habitability of exoplanet in the Universe as well as to promote and share the excitement of this work with the public. 

For his work he  received  the 2019 Physics Nobel Prize 

Research

Exoplanets, stellar physics, Universal life 

Publications

Key publications: 
  • A Jupiter-Mass Companion to a Solar-Type Star”, Mayor, M., & Queloz, D. 1995,  Nature, 378, 355. (2300 citations).
  • ELODIE: A spectrograph for accurate radial velocity measurements”, Baranne, A., Queloz, D., Mayor, et al., 1996, , Astronomy and Astrophysics Supplement Series, 119, 373. (771 citations).
  • Queloz, D.; Mayor, M.; Weber, L, et al. 2000, “The CORALIE survey for southern extra-solar planets. I. A planet orbiting the star Gliese 86”, A&A354, 99 (250 citations)
  • Queloz, D., Eggenberger, A., Mayor, et al. 2000, “Detection of a spectroscopic transit by the planet orbiting the star HD209458”, Astronomy and Astrophysics, 359, L13. (259 citations).
  • The effect of red noise on planetary transit detection, Pont, F.; Zucker, S.; Queloz, D., 2006, MNRAS 373, 231 (373 citations).
  • “The CoRoT-7 planetary system: two orbiting super-Earths”, Queloz, D.; Bouchy, F.; Moutou, C. et al., 2009, A&A 506, 303 (279 citations)
  • The HARPS search for southern extra-solar planets. XIII. A planetary system with 3 super-Earths (4.2, 6.9, and 9.2 Me), Mayor, M.; Udry, S.; Lovis, C.; Pepe, F.; Queloz, D.; Benz, W.; Bertaux, J.-L.; Bouchy, F.; Mordasini, C.; Segransan, D., 2009, A&A 493,639 (232 citations).
  • “WASP-8b: a retrograde transiting planet in a multiple system”, Queloz, D, Anderson, D. R.; Collier Cameron, A. et al., 2010, A&A517L, 1 (93 citations).
  • “Spin-orbit angle measurements for six southern transiting planets. New insights into the dynamical origins of hot Jupiters”, Triaud, A. H. M. J.; Collier Cameron, A.; Queloz, D, et al.  2010, A&A...524A.25 (318 citations).
  • Search for brown-dwarf companions of stars, Sahlmann, J.; Ségransan, D.; Queloz, D.; Udry, S.; Santos, N. C.; Marmier, M.; Mayor, M.; Naef, D.;Pepe, F.; Zucker, S., 2011, A&A525,95. (109 citations)
  • “Planets and stellar activity: hide and seek in the CoRoT-7 system”, by Haywood, R. D.; Collier Cameron, A.; Queloz, D.et al., 2014, MNRAS, 443, 2517 (138 citations).
  • “Temperate Earth-sized planets transiting a nearby ultra-cool dwarf star”,  Gillon, M. and Jehin, E., Lederer, S.M. and Delrez, L., de Wit, J., Burdanov, A., Van Grootel, V., Burgasser, A.J. Triaud, A.H.M.J., Demory, B.-O. Sahu, D.K., Bardalez Gagliuffi, D. Magain, P., Queloz, D., 2016, Nature 533, 221. (199 citations).
Other publications: 

Peer-reviewed articles:  407, 30’000 citations, H-index:  90 (ADS)

ADS

 

Teaching and Supervisions

Teaching: 

Part III, Exoplanets

Professor of Astrophysics
Professor Didier  Queloz

Contact Details

Email address: 
Room F24, Battcock Centre for Experimental Astrophysics
Cavendish Laboratory
JJ Thomson Avenue
Cambridge
CB3 0HE
+44 (0)1223 337083
Takes PhD students
Not available for consultancy