Speaker
Description
In the coming decades, the search for life beyond the Solar system will begin in earnest. But how should we choose the best targets for that search? In order to maximiseour chances of success, it is important to consider the many and various factors that could render one planet more or less habitable than another. In this talk, I will describe how dynamical simulations can reveal the role that giant planets like Jupiter play in controlling the impact regimes and long-term climate stability of Earth-like planets. By using the Solar system as a template, I demonstrate how changes to the mass or orbit of a giant Jupiter-like planet can significantly alter the potential habitability of any exoEarths that orbit the same star, revealing in the process that the answer to the question "Jupiter - Friend or Foe?" is "it's complicated".
