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The Potential for Exoplanet Science with Infrared Interferometry at Dome C

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 January 2006

M. R. Swain*
Affiliation:
Laboratoire d'Astrophysique, Observatoire de Grenoble, 414 rue de la Piscine, BP. 53, 38041 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
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Abstract

The atmosphere above the Concordia station at Dome C Antarctica offers unique advantages to infrared interferometry. No other astronomical technique experiences comparable performance gains relative to other good sites. The dramatic improvement in infrared interferometry performance at the Dome C site enables a relatively modest instrument, based on three ${\sim}2$ m class telescopes, to be capable of extensive unique discovery space science; such an instrument would be especially well-suited to the study of extrasolar planets. The conditions at Concordia are the closest Earth analog to those of space and potentially provide a stepping stone to proposed space interferometers, such as Darwin and TPFI, that will search for biomarkers on other habitable worlds – worlds that may well have been detected initially by an infrared interferometer operating at Dome C.


Type
Research Article
Copyright
© EAS, EDP Sciences, 2005

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