Planets are born from the gas, dust, and ice present within the disks around young stars. The icy component of the parent disk is profoundly important to the outcomes of planet formation, but prior to JWST there were virtually no observational constraints on ices in disks. In this talk, I will describe our recent progress in revealing the icy landscape of protoplanetary disks, using JWST in tandem with new simulation frameworks and lab experiments. I will highlight how these efforts are informing our understanding of the volatile composition of exoplanet building blocks, and the formation and behavior of icy planetesimals within and beyond our solar system.
Cody Hall, 50 St. George Street
Prof. Jennifer Bergner
October 14, 2026
2:00pm - 3:00pm

