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Isaac Malsky

Photo of Isaac Malsky

Address:

4800 Oak Grove Drive

Pasadena, CA 91109

Curriculum Vitae:

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Member of:

Exoplanet Discovery and Science

Biography

Isaac Malsky is originally from Albany NY. He recently received his PhD from the University of Michigan with a thesis on Modeling the atmospheric structure of gas giants. He is joining JPL a as a NPP fellow. At JPL, Isaac is working on modeling and characterizing exoplanet atmospheres, with a particular focus on radiative transfer routines. Outside of research, Isaac enjoys hiking, chess, Jiu Jitsu, and cooking.

Education

  • 2014 B.A., Physics, The University of Chicago
  • 2021 M.S., Astrophysics, The University of Michigan
  • 2024 PhD., Astrophysics, The University of Michigan

Professional Experience

Isaac completed his PhD at the University of Michigan in 2024, and has recently joined JPL in 2024.

Research Interests

Isaac is interested in a number of different topics related to the simulation and characterization of exoplanet atmospheres. In particular, radiative transfer, general circulation models, cloud modeling, and machine learning techniques to speed up the simulation of physical processes.

Selected Awards

  • NPP Fellowship 2024
  • Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship 2023
  • NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program Honorable Mention 2021
  • Michigan Space Grant 2021
  • University of Chicago Deans List 2014-2018
  • Jeff Metcalf Fellowship 2015

Selected Publications

  1. Malsky, I., Rauscher, E. Radiatively Active Clouds and Hazes in the Atmosphere of GJ 1214 b. In Prep.
  2. Malsky, I., Rauscher, E. Greater Spatial Variability in the Medium and High Resolution Emission Spectra of Polychromatic vs Double Gray GCMs. In Prep.
  3. Malsky, I., Rauscher, E., Kempton, E., Roman, T., Lee, E., Savel, A., Beltz, H., Cinque, L, (2024). A Direct Comparison between the use of Double Gray and Multiwavelength Radiative Transfer in a General Circulation Model with and without Radiatively Active Clouds. The Astrophysical Journal.
  4. Malsky, I., Rogers, L., Kempton, E., Marounina, N., (2022). A Prediction of Helium-Enhanced Atmospheres on the Edge of the Planetary Radius Gap. Nature Astronomy.
  5. Malsky, I., Rauscher, E., Kempton, E., Roman, M., Long, D., Harada, C., (2021). Modeling the High-resolution Emission Spectra of Clear and Cloudy Nontransiting Hot Jupiters. The Astrophysical Journal.
  6. Malsky, I., Rogers, L. (2020). Coupled Thermal and Compositional Evolution of Photo Evaporating Planet Envelopes. The Astrophysical Journal.
  7. Beltz, H., Rauscher, E., Kempton, E., Malsky, I., Savel, A., (2023). Magnetic Effects and 3D Structure in Theoretical High-Resolution Transmission Spectra of Ultrahot Jupiters: the Case of WASP-76b. The Astronomical Journal.
  8. Murphy, M., Beatty, T., Roman, T., Malsky, I., Wingate, A., Ochs, G., Cinque, L., Beltz, H., Rauscher, E., Kempton, E., Stevenson K. (2023). A Lack of Variability Between Repeated Spitzer Phase Curves of WASP-43b. The Astronomical Journal.
  9. Beltz, H., Rauscher, E., Kempton, E., Malsky, I., Ochs, G., Arora, M., Savel, A., (2022). Magnetic Drag and 3D Effects in Theoretical High-resolution Emission Spectra of Ultrahot Jupiters: the Case of WASP-76b. The Astronomical Journal.
  10. Belkovski, M., Becker, J., Howe, A., Malsky, I., Batygin, K. (2022). A multi-planet system’s sole super-puff: exploring allowable physical parameters for the cold super-puff HIP 41378 f. The Astronomical Journal.
  11. Kasper, D., Bean, J., Oklopˇci´c, A., Malsky, I., Kempton, E., D´esert, J., Rogers, L., Mansfield, M. (2020). Non-detection of Helium in the Upper Atmospheres of Three Sub-Neptune Exoplanets. The Astronomical Journal.
  12. Hammond, M., including Malsky, I., Two-dimensional Eclipse Mapping of the Hot-Jupiter WASP-43b with JWST MIRI/LRS (2024). AJ.
  13. Kempton, E., including Malsky, I., A reflective, metal-rich atmosphere for GJ 1214b from its JWST phase curve (2024). Nature.
  14. Bell, T., including Malsky, I., Nightside clouds and disequilibrium chemistry on the hot Jupiter WASP-43b (2024). Nature Astronomy.
  15. King, G., including Malsky, I., The XUV-driven escape of the planets around TOI-431 and ν2 Lupi (2024). The Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
  16. Gao, P., including Malsky, I. The Hazy and Metal-rich Atmosphere of GJ 1214 b Constrained by Near- and Mid-infrared Transmission Spectroscopy (2023). The Astronomical Journal.
  17. Savel, A., including Malsky, I. Diagnosing limb asymmetries in hot and ultra-hot Jupiters with high-resolution transmission spectroscopy (2022). The Astrophysical Journal.
  18. Christie, D., including Malsky, I., (2022) CAMEMBERT: A Mini-Neptunes GCM Intercomparison, Protocol Version 1.0. A CUISINES Model Intercomparison Project. The Planetary Science Journal.
  19. Caldiroli, A., including Malsky, I., Rauscher, E., (2022). Irradiation-driven escape of primordial planetary atmospheres II. Evaporation efficiency of sub-Neptunes through hot Jupiters. Astronomy and Astrophysics.
  20. Caldiroli, A., including Malsky, I., Rauscher, E., (2021). Irradiation-driven escape of primordial planetary atmospheres I. The ATES photoionization hydrodynamics code. Astronomy and Astrophysics.
  21. Harada, C., including Malsky, I., Brinjikji, M. (2021). Signatures of Clouds in Hot Jupiter Atmospheres: Modeled High Resolution Emission Spectra from 3D General Circulation Models. The Astrophysical Journal.