Cloud busting with JWST

Remote sensing of substellar and exoplanet atmospheres using the James Webb Space Telescope and the Brewster spectral retrieval code to explore cloud properties and composition. By providing critical tests and real-world benchmarking of predictive cloud models, my data-driven analysis will enable robust estimates of atmospheric compositions across the full temperature range of gas giant exoplanets. This will reveal the formation histories of giant exoplanets and their host systems.

Clouds are often seen as an obstacle to exoplanet science, but the unique capabilities of the James Webb Space Telescope will revolutionise our ability to reconnoitre distant atmospheres. Thanks to JWST, clouds will soon provide new insights into the composition, chemistry and dynamics of alien worlds. With this fellowship, I will decode the JWST spectra of distant worlds to reveal their cloud properties, composition, and thermal structure, and ultimately reveal the story of their formation.