Astrophysical Simulations and Data Analyses on the Formation, Detection, and Habitability of Moons Around Extrasolar Planets

TL;DR

This thesis explores the formation, detection, and habitability of moons around extrasolar planets, addressing why none have been confirmed yet and proposing new strategies for their discovery and study.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive review and new research on exomoon formation, detection methods, and their potential to host life, including original peer-reviewed publications.

Findings

Proposed new detection strategies for exomoons

Analyzed formation scenarios for moons around exoplanets

Assessed exomoons' potential to support life

Abstract

While the solar system contains as many as about 20 times more moons than planets, no moon has been definitively detected around any of the thousands of extrasolar planets so far. The question naturally arises why an exomoon detection has not yet been achieved. This cumulative habilitation thesis covers three of the key aspects related to the ongoing search for extrasolar moons: 1. the possible formation scenarios for moons around extrasolar planets; 2. new detection strategies for these moons; and 3. the potential of exomoons as hosts to extrasolar life. This work is structured as follows. Part I gives a broad introduction to the field of extrasolar moons with special attention to their formation, detection, and habitability. Part II presents the cumulative part of this thesis with a total of 16 peer-reviewed journal publications listing the author of this thesis as a lead author, and six publications with the author of this thesis as a co-author. Part III shares some insights into our ongoing research on exomoons in collaboration with master student Anina Timmermann at the Georg-August University of G\"ottingen and former PhD student Kai Rodenbeck at the International Max Planck Research School for Solar System Science and the University of G\"ottingen. The Appendix is a collection of non-peer-reviewed conference proceedings and popular science publications by the author that further disseminate our research of extrasolar moons.