Preceding the 2026 Sagan Summer Workshop, the optional add-on, half-day PROfessional Tools and Opportunities (PROTO) Workshop will take place on July 19, 2026. It aims to educate and empower attendees to get ready for the deluge of exoplanet discoveries to come from the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. From context about the non-exoplanet science with Roman and how exoplanets can be integrated into new missions to how the Kepler mission revolutionized astronomy and how AI can help to prepare for Roman, please join us to learn from leaders across astronomy.
This workshop will be a hybrid meeting and all are welcome to attend. PROTO registration uses the same form as the 2026 Sagan Summer Workshop, so you can register for both using this registration form.
PROTO will take place in the Baxter Lecture Hall, the same venue as the 2026 Sagan Workshop. Please note that the entrance to Baxter Lecture Hall is the same as Ramo Auditorium. The check-in will take place at the lily pond outside of Ramo Auditorium.
A pre-PROTO webinar on tips and tricks for effective communication with scientific posters was held on June 23, 2026. Alison Duck from the NASA Exoplanet Exploration Program office shared advice that you can use for your posters and pops. The slides from this presentation can be found here and the video here.
The list of partipants can be found at these links: in-person and remote.
Please note that letters of attendance will not be provided for attendance of the PROTO workshop.
| Time (PT) | Title | Speaker |
| 12:00 pm | PROTO Workshop Check-in | |
| 12:30 pm | Welcome - Contextualizing Exoplanet Science in the Roman Era (View Video) | Anjali Tripathi (NASA JPL) |
| 12:45 pm | Pre-Kepler Exoplanet Science (View Video) | David Ciardi (Caltech/IPAC-NExScI) |
| 1:30 pm | Cosmic Co-Discovery with AI: Where do we start? (View Video) | Ioana Ciuca (Stanford University) |
| 2:30 pm | Break | |
| 3:00 pm | Exploring the Dark Universe with Roman (View Video) | Jason Rhodes (NASA JPL) |
| 3:35 pm | The Origins of Exoplanets with PRIMA (View Video) | Klaus Pontoppidan (NASA JPL) |
| 4:10 pm | Closing Remarks (View Video) | Anjali Tripathi (NASA JPL), Alison Duck (NASA JPL) |
| 4:30 pm | Adjourn |
Questions? Sagan_Workshop@ipac.caltech.edu
(last updated July 21st, 2026 10:49:46)
The NASA Exoplanet Science Institute is operated by the California Institute of Technology, under contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration under the Exoplanet Exploration Program.
