The Other Worlds Laboratory (OWL) is a research and collaboration initiative at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) that builds on the university’s historic successes in the study of planets inside and outside the solar system. UCSC research in planets crosses several departments, and we have had great success in crossing traditional boundaries between departments and fields.
Within OWL, we seek to understand Earth’s place in the diversity of our solar system, use state-of-the-art techniques to find planets around other stars (“exoplanets”), understand how planets form, characterize their atmospheres, and understand if they are possible homes for life.
Our main activity has been the successful Exoplanet Summer Program. The Summer 2024 Program will be July 8-July 26!