Carl Sagan Institute

"Exoplanets are planets that orbit stars, outside our solar system. And for some, we can see them as shadows crossing the bright, hot face of their star." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper (Research Associate, Astronomy Department, @Cornell, @CSInst fellow) #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/twgDHVCdEU

"When they block some of the star’s light from our view, we can infer their presence by monitoring stars for periodic dimmings." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper (@AstroAndrew123) #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/maECphBdYC

"The dimmings caused by a transiting exoplanet resemble the periodic blips on the screen of an electrocardiogram (EKG) machine. Astronomers have found about 3000 transiting exoplanets this way." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper (@AstroAndrew123) #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/4AmcBHo0DX

"Transiting planets exhibit a huge diversity in properties such as size, mass, and temperature. Most of them are unlike any of the planets in our own solar system." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper (@AstroAndrew123) #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/pi5gC6n3Wg

"Here at the Carl Sagan Institute we measure and model the atmosphere of such transiting exoplanet from giant gas balls to small rocky worlds to uncover their secrets." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/yR0Qdg11cW

"Depending on the chemical make-up of the planet, the gases absorb different wavelengths or colors of light. Thus we can explore the composition of exoplanet atmospheres even though they are staggeringly far away." Dr. Andrew Ridden-Harper (@AstroAndrew123) #COSMOSCSI #COSMOSpic.twitter.com/ZpViiDPgqa