Kevin France

Dr. France’s research focuses on exoplanets and their host stars, protoplanetary disks, and the development of instrumentation for ultraviolet astrophysics.   He is the Principal Investigator of the ESCAPE Small Explorer mission concept, the CUTE small satellite mission, and a NASA-supported sounding rocket to study exoplanet atmospheres and flight-test critical path hardware for future UV/optical astrophysics missions.  He is a regular guest observer with the Hubble Space Telescope and serves on numerous science and technical advisory groups for NASA.  He was a member of the HST-COS instrument and science teams and the study PI for the LUVOIR ultraviolet spectrograph. 

Recent publications:

• “The Colorado Ultraviolet Transit Experiment Mission Overview”, France, K., et al., AJ, 2023, arXiv
• “AU Microscopii in the Far-UV: Observations in Quiescence, during Flares, and Implications for AU Mic b and c”, Feinstein, A., France, K., et al., AJ, 2022, arXiv
• “Extreme-ultraviolet Stellar Characterization for Atmospheric Physics and Evolution mission: motivation and overview”, France, K., et al., JATIS, 2022, arXiv
• “The High-energy Radiation Environment around a 10 Gyr M Dwarf: Habitable at Last?”, France, K., et al., AJ, 2020, arXiv
• “Estimating the Ultraviolet Emission of M Dwarfs with Exoplanets from Ca II and Hα”, Melbourne, K., Youngblood, A., France, K. et al., AJ, 2020, arXiv
• “Probing UV-sensitive Pathways for CN and HCN Formation in Protoplanetary Disks with the Hubble Space Telescope”, Arulanantham, N., France, K., et al., AJ, 2020, arXiv