Presenter: Colin JOHNSTONE
Abstract:
Highly active stars emit copious amounts of high-energy X-ray and ultraviolet radiation. This radiation is absorbed in the upper atmospheres of planets where is drives a large number of physical processes, including dissociation, ionisation, and heating. These processes are crucially important for determining how rapidly atmospheric gas is lost to space. In this talk, I will review the latest research on the upper atmospheres of planets and the evolution of planetary atmospheres in response to atmospheric losses, concentrating on planets orbiting very active stars. The will introduce and discuss results from a recently developed general purpose upper atmosphere model called The Kompot Code.