Mathis Bouffard

Mathis is a master’s student at the Université de Montréal, under the supervision of Professor René Doyon. He studies the atmospheric composition of the planets orbiting the red dwarf TRAPPIST-1, some of which are among the best candidates for detecting signs of life outside our solar system. He aims to measure the abundance of certain greenhouse gases in the atmospheres of these rocky exoplanets. To that end, he analyzes high resolution spectroscopic observations from the SPIRou (Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope), NIRPS (3.6m telescope at La Silla Observatory) and IRD (Subaru Telescope) instruments. As an avid reader of science fiction, he is thrilled to contribute to the search for biosignatures on potentially habitable exoplanets.

While earning his bachelor’s degree in physics at McGill University, completed in May 2024, Mathis undertook an undergraduate thesis as well as two IREx summer internships. In 2024, under the supervision of Professor Nicolas Cowan and Dr. Vigneshwaran Krishnamurthy, he began his search for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of TRAPPIST-1 b. During his first research internship, in 2023, within Professor Björn Benneke’s team, he detected four chemical species in the atmosphere of the hot Jupiter WASP-189 b.

In addition to research, Mathis is actively involved in science communication. After completing The Eclipse Ambassadors Training Program in 2023, he led a workshop at his local library, and he now continues to share his passion for astrophysics as a member of InitiaSciences.