Andrew W. Howard

Andrew W. Howard is a Professor of Astronomy and Executive Officer for Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). His primary research focuses on extrasolar planets, particularly their formation, evolution, and diversity. He leads the Howard Group, utilizing telescopes in Hawaii, California, and space-based missions like TESS to discover and characterize exoplanets. His work emphasizes the structural and compositional diversity of small exoplanets compared to Solar System analogs, analyzing planetary ingredients like hydrogen gas, water, rock, and iron. Howard is also involved in advanced instrumentation, such as the Keck Planet Finder (KPF), to achieve high-precision radial velocity measurements. His research group has contributed to studies on stellar obliquity, planet demographics, and the TESS-Keck Survey. Howard holds a B.S. from MIT (1998), an M.A. from Harvard (2001), and a Ph.D. from Harvard (2006), with prior faculty roles at the University of Hawaii before joining Caltech in 2016. He currently oversees the Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy as Executive Officer since 2023.

Education:

• B.S. in Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1998
• M.A. in Physics, Harvard University, 2001
• Ph.D. in Physics, Harvard University, 2006

Research Interests:

• Extrasolar planet discovery and characterization
• Stellar obliquity measurements
• Planetary composition and diversity
• Astrophysical instrumentation (e.g., KPF)
• Exoplanet demographics and population studies

Recent work highlights the prevalence of planetary systems with diverse architectures and the role of tidal migration in shaping hot Jupiter systems. His articles emphasize statistical trends in exoplanet properties, including the prevalence of Earth-like rocky planets in close orbits and the impact of stellar spin-down mechanisms on planet formation. Collaborative projects like the TESS-Keck Survey and Giant Outer Transiting Exoplanet Mass (GOT 'EM) Survey underscore his focus on large-scale observational campaigns to contextualize Solar System dynamics within broader galactic frameworks.

Advising and Grants: While no named advisees are listed, Howard’s group actively engages in observational and theoretical exoplanet research. His grants support instrumentation development (e.g., KPF) and participation in major surveys like TESS.

Labs/Teams: The Howard Group at Caltech and the Keck Planet Finder initiative are central to his research activities.