Agenda PLATO Week #18

Wednesday 29 July, 2026

• Welcome (10 min)
• Mission and Payload overview (J. Windsor, 30 min)
• PMC and ESA overviews
  • Guest Observers Programme & Communications (M. Günther, 20 min)
  • PMC Publication and Membership policy updates (H. Rauer, 20 min)

• WGs adoption presentations [60 min]
  • Characterizing Stellar Surface Magnetism from Transit Light Curves WG (from PW17), (N. Kostogryz) (15 min)
  • Extending solar flare statistics with observations of flares on Sun-like stars WG (from PW17), (V. Vasilyev) (15 min)
  • Granulation in solar-like stars WG (M. Sloth Lundkvist & Y. Zhou) (15 min)
  • PLOPS WG (L. Carone) (15 min)
• Discussion (if needed) [10 min]
• WG and WP progress presentations [30 min]
  • INFER WG status (A.J. Poser) (15 min)
  • WP116100 status (T. Guillot) (15 min)

• WG and WP progress presentations (cont.)
  • Status update of the PLATO MAISE (Modeling Atmospheric-Interior-Stellar-Effects) Working Group (J.L. Grenfell) (15 min)
  • Status update of the Machine Learning Team (T. Zingales) (15 min)
• From Launch to Science - a timeline (H. Rauer; PMC/ESA) (60 min)
  • Availability of data products within PMC
  • Science validation of L1, EAS, & SAS using real PLATO data
  • Early Science WG recomendations
  • Nominal Science operations

• CDPS pipeline integration status (J. Windsor involving PDC/SOC and PL Mgt) [120 min]

• MAISE WG splinter (J.L. Grenfell) [120 min]
  • 15:30 - 15:45 Introduction
  • 15:45 - 16:15 Previous Action Items
  • 16:15 - 16:30 MAISE Confluence Page
  • 16:30 -16:45 Break
  • 16:45 - 17:15 Science Results 
  • 17:15 - 17:30 Open discussion and AOB

Thursday July 30, 2026

• SGS Overviews (ESA and PMC) [75 min]
  • SOC +MOC (L. O'Rourke) (20 min)
  • PMC centres (40 min)
    •  PSM (D. Brown)
    •  PDC (M. Ammler - von Eiff)
    •  PPT/PCOT(J. Cabrera/P. Bluhm Ceballos) 
  • GOP (S. Udry) (15 min)
• Discussion [15 min]

• Contributed talks [70 min]
  • Estimating the systematics in the uncertainties of stellar and planetary parameters (A. Bonfanti) (15 min)
  • Uncertainties in the determination of the oscillation frequencies of stellar models (I. W. Roxburgh) (15 min)
  • POPCORN an interactive explorer of PLATO LOPS2 planets and candidates (A. J. Poser & Y. Eschen) (10 min)
  • Benchmark eclipsing binary stars in the PLATO LOPS2 field (P. Maxted) (15 min)
  • Lessons for PLATO: Tiny geometric effects in the radial velocity and transit light curve fits of EAS (Sz. Csizmadia) (15 min)
• Annie Baglin in memory [20 min]

• INFER WG splinter (A.J. Poser) [120 min]
  • Part 1: Demo and progress reports on science backend, software, usability

• GOP splinter (S- Udry) [120 min]
  • GOP and planet yield → understanding the data and scaling follow-up resources

• TPT Discussion (J. Cabrera) [120 min]

• INFER WG splinter (A.J. Poser, cont.)
  • Part 2: In-depth discussion, continuing the Q&A - from publication policy to funding over next features

• GOP splinter (S- Udry, cont.)
  • Working session to develop observing time proposals

• TPT Discussion (J. Cabrera, cont.)

• PSCT (closed session - seperate link has been sent to PSCT members)

• Social event in Domus Bibliotheca (18:00 -19:00)
• Public evening event in Domus Bibliotheca (19:30 -21:00)
  • Welcome
  • Evening Lecture by H. Rauer - EXOPLANETS - Finding other worlds with the PLATO mission
  • Short Presentation by M. Günther - ESA insights into the PLATO mission

  • Short Presentation by S.C. Werner - Norway's contribution to the PLATO mission

    Zoom room (passcode is the same as for other meetings today)

Friday July 31, 2026

• Data Analysis Support Tools (R. Heller) (120 min)

  • Demo of new DAST tools for inspection of stellar data products (DP3,4,5)

   

• ESA/PMC Communication teams splinter (M. Günther)
  • 09:00 - 09:05 Welcome & objectives, M. Günther 
  • 09:05 - 09:15 Introduction to PLATO, H. Rauer
  • 09:15 - 09:30 ESA’s plans for Plato communication, G. Giardino & I. Nijman (ESA)
  • 09:30 - 09:45 PLATO activities in Berlin (online), R. Titz-Weider (Germany)
  • 09:45 - 10:00 PLATO activities in France, L. Grau (France)
  • 10:00 - 10:15 UKSA mission promotion (Online) J. Sokolowska Sala & D. Polacco (UK)
  • 10:15 - 10:30 IWF's example for a PLATO public outreach strategy (Online), R.-S. Taubner, C. Helling, and A. Scherr (Austria)

• Data Analysis Support Tools (R. Heller) (cont.)

  • Execution and documentation of DAST test cases

   

• Science Validation during operations (D. Brown & R. Ouazzani) [120 min]

• ESA/PMC Communication teams splinter (M. Günther) (cont.)
  • 11:00 - 11:15 PLATO outreach activities in Spain (Online), J. M. Mas-Hesse & S. de Francisis (Spain)
  • 11:15 - 11:30 PLATO comms activities via PlanetS and U. Geneva (Online) B. Lavie & S. Udry (Switzerland)
  • 11:30 - 11:45 PLATO comms activities in Italy I. Pagano (Italy)
  • 11:45 - 12:00 Preparing for PLATO: Science Communication and Outreach in Portugal (Online), B. Oliveira (Portugal)
  • 12:00 - 12:15 PLATO comms activities in Norway , S. C. Werner & K. Herbst (Norway)
  • 12:15 - 12:30 Exoplanet music H. Rauer & D. Kossakowska
  • 12:30 - 13:00 Conclusions, open discussion & networking M. Günther

• PMC general topics (reserve)
• Contributed talks (reserve)

• L1-L2 interface (D. Brown) 

• Progress on Composition and evolution of terrestrial planets (WP 115 600) splinter (S.C. Werner) (120 min)
  • 14:00 - 14:20 Welcome, Intro to PHAB and GREP – S. C. Werner
  • 14:20 - 14:40 Introduction to the activities at FU Berlin – L. Noack
  • 14:40 - 14:50 SCoRE - The surface composition of rocky exoplanets – L. Sereinig
  • 14:50 - 15:00 Oxygen fugacity and planet formation timing: Insights from simulated rocky exoplanets – P. Hatalova

• L1-L2 interface (D. Brown, cont.) 

• Progress on Composition and evolution of terrestrial planets (WP 115 600, cont.)
  • 15:30 -15:50 Activities of PHAB’s Exo-Earth Team – K. Herbst
  • 15:50 - 16:00 The effect of stellar spin-down on the planetary environment – D. Evensberget and K. Herbst
  • 16:00 - 16:20 Stellar flare-driven evolution of primordial early exo-Earth atmospheres: Insights from Young M Dwarf Flare model – E. Mamonova
  • 16:20 - 16:30 Exoplanet demographics – L. Zeng, S. C. Werner, S. B. Jacobsen, E. Mamonova, R. G. Trønnes, R. Brasser
  • Discussion (?)