Available Student Projects

MSc (Res) in Astronomy

Modelling and Interpretation of Exoplanetary Atmospheres

Our knowledge of exoplanet atmospheres is undergoing a paradigm change following the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). High-quality spectroscopic observations of exoplanet atmospheres necessitate a careful reassessment of model assumptions that were sufficient in the pre-JWST era, in order to ensure the reliable inference of atmospheric properties (e.g. the chemical composition, temperature profile, and aerosol properties).

In this MSc (Res) project, you will investigate new ways to improve state-of-the-art models of exoplanet spectra. You will also have the opportunity to apply these models to JWST observations of giant exoplanets, which will allow you to measure the atmospheric properties of worlds around other stars.

Degree details:

The MSc by Research, or MSc (Res) degree, is an increasingly popular one-year Masters by research degree offered at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.

The course is designed for those students and professionals who have a strong first degree in Physics, Astronomy, or a related subject. It provides students with high-level research experience, and advanced knowledge within a specialised area of Physics or Astronomy. Students typically choose this course to increase their practical research experience in an intensive one year of study.

You will be fully embedded within one of our research groups, and involved in the design, planning, execution, analysis and write-up phases of a high-level research task. Through this degree, you will develop a wide range of practical and computational skills.

Students undertaking an MSc (Res) have access to the same graduate-level courses as PhD/EngD students provided through the Scottish Universities Physics Alliance (SUPA), and a wide range of transferable skills courses provided by both the University and SUPA.

Assessment involves writing a thesis of no more than 30,000 words, describing your research and its context. This thesis is examined, but there is no viva.

Deadline:

Rolling call until filled. Entry normally in September each year.

Funding:

There are limited funding opportunities open to UK, EU and international students listed on the University of St Andrews’ postgraduate scholarships page.

International students may also consider applying for national scholarships.

If intending to apply for such scholarships, please contact me in plenty of time before any external deadline.

Contact:

For further details, please reach out to Dr Ryan MacDonald (rm440@st-andrews.ac.uk)

Past Student Projects

Hot Jupiters to Water Worlds: Giant Exoplanet Atmospheres with JWST

(2 Projects)

As JWST entered its 2nd year of science operations (Cycle 2), these two projects saw two University of Michigan astrophysics major undergraduates join our efforts to interpret JWST spectra of giant exoplanet atmospheres. The two projects were:

1. The Multidimensional Atmosphere of a Hot Jupiter. We recently observed the hot Jupiter WASP-52b with JWST as part of a Cycle 2 Program aiming to measure differences between the east and west sides of the planet. The student joined our team’s efforts to measure the chemical composition, temperature, and cloud properties on each side of the planet. Multiple papers resulted from this project.

2. What are the Water Worlds? A major open question in exoplanet science is the unknown atmospheric properties of the class of exoplanets with intermediate size between Earth and Neptune. Recently, several planets have been discovered with densities suggesting they contain substantial amounts of water. But the nature of the atmospheres of these ‘water worlds’ is currently unknown. We observed 5 of these mysterious planets with JWST through a Large Cycle 2 Program to measure their atmospheric composition. The student joined our team’s efforts to measure the atmospheric properties of candidate water worlds, resulting in multiple published papers.

The two students learnt how to use a state-of-the-art Bayesian inference code to extract atmospheric properties from an exoplanet spectrum and applied these techniques to JWST observations of exoplanets. They also joined and contributed to meetings of international JWST teams during the analysis efforts and presented their results at multiple astronomy conferences.

Searching for an Atmosphere on the Super-Earth GJ 1132b with JWST

I worked with a UMich student throughout 2023 to interpret two JWST transit observations of the warm rocky exoplanet GJ 1132b (T ~ 600 K). After the observations were successful in February 2023, our goal was to determine if the planet has an atmosphere and, if so, to measure its atmospheric composition.

The student joined an international team working on the analysis of GJ 1132b’s JWST observations, wrote and ran code to fit the planet’s spectrum, and co-authored an accepted scientific paper in the Astrophysical Journal Letters. The student also travelled to an exoplanet conference at Yale to present their results.