Eyes on the Sky

Ashley Baker wants to find new planets. Her doctoral research focused on designing and building instrumentation for astronomical telescopes and earned her a 51 Pegasi b Fellowship in Planetary Astronomy from the Heising-Simons Foundation. 

“One of the instruments I built was a prototype designed to make measurements of the atmospheres of exoplanets, which are planets orbiting a star outside our solar system, more efficient for ground-based telescopes,” says Baker, who completed a Ph.D. in physics and astronomy in May. Her three-year fellowship began in summer 2020 at the California Institute of Technology.

Planetary astronomers like Baker look for molecules found in Earth’s atmosphere, such as oxygen, with the goal of finding habitable, Earth-like planets. Ground-based telescopes are just one of the methods used to find them. “With the special filter that I’m using, you can split light into different colors to learn about the actual molecules in an exoplanet’s atmosphere,” Baker says.

Throughout her involvement with physics and astronomy, Baker has been committed to sharing the excitement of discovery with others. At Penn, she was part of the physics and astronomy department’s outreach group, which partners with science institutions in Philadelphia. While her future career plans are uncertain, she is sure that public engagement will be part of her life as a scientist.

“I enjoy seeing how excited people get about planetary research,” she says. “It provides context for us about our existence—it’s directly relatable on a personal level. And it feels good to help people reach that ‘aha’ moment.”