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Clara Sousa-Silva

Center for Astrophysics

51 Pegasi b Fellow

clara.sousa-silva@cfa.harvard.edu

About

Clara Sousa-Silva is a quantum astrochemist and science communicator. She investigates how molecules interact with light so that they can be detected on faraway worlds. Clara spends most of her time studying molecules that life can produce so that, one day, she can detect an alien biosphere. Her favorite molecular biosignature is phosphine: a terrifying gas associated with mostly unpleasant life. When she is not deciphering exoplanet atmospheres, Clara works hard to persuade the next generation of scientists to become an active part of the astronomical community.

MPhys Physics and Astronomy (University of Edinburgh); PhD in Molecular Astrophysics (University College London)

Projects

Harvard-MIT Science Research Mentoring Program (SRMP)

Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences, John G. Wolbach Library, Science Education Department

The Science Research Mentoring Program (SRMP) at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) provides an opportunity for high-school students to work on a year-long independent research project in astrophysics under the guidance of a Harvard or MIT scientist. Students learn what it is actually like to conduct real, cutting-edge research and work closely with scientists from diverse backgrounds.

Telescopes and Instruments

Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS)

Astronomers have discovered thousands of planets orbiting other stars. Extrapolating from that knowledge, the Milky Way alone is probably home to hundreds of billions of planets, many of which are likely rocky, Earth-like worlds. NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is a space observatory designed to look for exoplanets in orbit around 200,000 nearby bright stars, with a particular interest in identifying small planets. Astronomers from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian are part of the scientific team to analyze TESS data, as well as performing follow-up observations. The relative closeness of worlds in the TESS survey will allow astronomers to even study some of their atmospheres, using the future Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) and other observatories. TESS observational program is complementary to NASA’s long-running Kepler/K2 mission, and could identify as many as 20,000 new exoplanet orbiting a wide variety of star types.

Visit the TESS Website

SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy)

Earth’s atmosphere protects us from harmful radiation, but it also blocks a lot of light useful for astronomy. For that reason, NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) built the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) to fly aboard a modified commercial aircraft capable of flying above 99% of the light-blocking atmosphere. SOFIA is a powerful, general-purpose infrared observatory used to study the birth of new stars, planetary nebulas and supernova remnants, the atmospheres of Solar System objects, and many more. The American portion of SOFIA management is handled by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA), a private educational corporation consisting of over 100 institutions, including the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian.

Visit the SOFIA Website

The Submillimeter Array - Maunakea, HI

Located near the summit of Maunakea on the Big Island of Hawaii, the Submillimeter Array (SMA) is one of the flagship observatories of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian. The observatory consists of eight radio dishes working together as one telescope, giving astronomers a window on a wide range of astronomical objects and phenomena: planets and comets in our own Solar System; the birth of stars and planets; and the supermassive black holes hidden at the centers of the Milky Way and other galaxies. The SMA is operated jointly by the CfA and the Academia Sinica in Taiwan.

Visit the Submillimeter Array Website