Physics colloquium is April 4 The Department of Physics will present "Simulations for Multi-Object Spectrograph Planet Surveys" by Stephen Kane (University of Florida) at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 4, in 211 Witmer Hall. Coffee and cookies will be served at 3:30 p.m. in 215 Witmer Hall. The public is invited. Of all the methods used for the detection of extra-solar planets, the radial velocity technique is still the dominant source of extra-solar planet discoveries. The development of multi-object spectrographs for use in radial velocity surveys is expected to further increase the detection rate of extra-solar planets by at least an order of magnitude. The dramatic increase in data acquisition requires that a robust method be developed which is able to adequately screen the data for planet candidates. Kane will present simulations of the expected results from a generic multi-object survey based on calculated noise models and sensitivity for the instrument and the known distribution of exoplanetary system parameters. Code has been developed for automatically sifting and fitting the planet candidates produced by the survey to allow for fast follow-up observations to be conducted. Considering the expected high number of hot Jupiters from the survey, a transit ephemeris is automatically calculated by the radial velocity code for each candidate and updated when new data becomes available. Early photometric follow-up of planet candidates during the predicted transit windows will indicate whether or not the planet's orbit is favorably inclined for a transit signature to be visible. The techniques presented here may be applied to a wide range of radial velocity planet surveys. -- Connie Cicha, Administrative Secretary, Physics, connie_cicha@und.nodak.edu, 7-2911