Kevin Wagner

Kevin Wagner is a NASA Hubble/Sagan Fellow at the University of Arizona, specializing in exoplanet research with a focus on circumstellar disks and planet formation. His work leverages advanced telescopic systems such as the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Very Large Telescope (VLT), and MagAO-X for high-contrast imaging. He has contributed to key projects like the HOSTS Survey and the JWST Early Release Science Program, advancing techniques for detecting protoplanets and characterizing exoplanetary systems.

Education: Ph.D. in Astronomy (2020, University of Arizona).

Research interests include imaging young planetary systems, studying accretion processes in protoplanetary disks, and developing mid-infrared spectroscopy methods for exoplanet detection. His recent work emphasizes direct imaging of exoplanets in habitable zones and AGN outflow dynamics using the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT).

Articles highlight breakthroughs in detecting Saturn/Jupiter analogs with JWST MIRI, orbital modeling of eccentric substellar companions, and validating planet candidates around accelerating stars. His contributions also include improving thermal background subtraction techniques for ELT-class telescopes.

• Key awards: NASA Hubble/Sagan Fellowship (Research Excellence).

Advising/grants: Active in the Giant Accreting Protoplanet Survey (GAPlanetS) and the Bioverse project targeting exo-Earth biosignatures. Collaborates on instrument development (e.g., SCALES for aperture masking).

Labs/Teams: Affiliated with the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL), contributing to the LBT Interferometer and SCExAO/CHARIS imaging campaigns.