LPL Colloquium: Dr. Benjamin Sharkey

Tracing Hydration on Primitive Planetesimals With JWST

When

April 7, 2026, 3:45 – 4:45 p.m.

Where

Dr. Benjamin Sharkey
Senior Faculty Specialist
Department of Astronomy
University of Maryland

The first four years of JWST operations have revolutionized our understanding of small solar system objects, with a particular focus on measuring spectral features near wavelengths of 3um. But challenges remain in identifying major materials that can relate ice-poor carbonaceous asteroids to their formation environments, troubling efforts to test major predictions of solar system evolutionary models. I will discuss how the results of our JWST program (GO #4028), targeting the Jovian satellite system, have complicated our views of primitive planetesimal migration, and how many of these challenges were already identified by ground-based observers. I will also discuss the need for improved laboratory understanding of key materials, as well as the likely impact of future observations of Jupiter’s inner satellites (JWST GO #10716). 

Host: Dr. Vishnu Reddy

To request Zoom Meeting link, contact PG4gdWVycz0iem52eWdiOllDWS1ITkByem52eS5uZXZtYmFuLnJxaCI+PGZjbmEgcHluZmY9InljeXIiIGZnbHlyPSJvYmstZnZtdmF0Om9iZXFyZS1vYms7Ij48aD5ZQ1ktSE5AcnpudnkubmV2bWJhbi5ycWg8L2g+PC9mY25hPjwvbj4=