Life Beyond the Solar System
Montréal, February 11, 2019 – Free Lecture on Life Beyond the Solar System
A free conference on life beyond the solar system will be held at Théâtre Desjardins on February 27, 2019, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m.
Professor René Doyon, physicist at the Institute for Research on Exoplanets (iREx), Université de Montréal, will present the technological advances that could reveal signs of life in regions far beyond our solar system.
This conference is presented by Optech, the College Technology Transfer Center (CCTT) specializing in optics and photonics at Cégep André-Laurendeau.
A Thriving Research Context
Professor Doyon will explain the technological breakthroughs that have led to the detection of thousands of exoplanets. Statistically, it is estimated that more than a quarter of nearby stars — red dwarfs — each have at least one rocky planet in their habitable zone, the region around a star where liquid water could exist on a planet’s surface. Such planets are prime candidates for life.
In the coming years, new high-precision astronomical instruments, some developed at Université de Montréal, will make it possible to identify the closest potentially habitable planets to our Sun. Meanwhile, the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021, will provide humanity’s very first opportunity to probe the atmospheres of these potentially habitable worlds.
Later in the next decade, a new generation of giant telescopes (30–40 m) will have the capability to detect a biosignature — a spectral signature of life — in the atmosphere of a nearby exoplanet.
Professor René Doyon was named Radio-Canada’s Scientist of the Year in 2008 for capturing the first-ever photograph of a planetary system outside our own.
About Optech
Optech specializes in optics and photonics, particularly in fiber optics and sensors, imaging and illumination, metrology, and microsystems. It helps companies innovate by providing expertise, applied research laboratories, and support in product and process development.
Event Details
Life Beyond the Solar System
by Professor René Doyon
📅 February 27, 2019 | ⏰ 12:15 – 1:30 p.m.
📍 Théâtre Desjardins, 1111 Lapierre Street, LaSalle
🎟️ Free admission
ℹ️ Information: (514) 364-3325, ext. 6817