Summer Schools 2025

Week-Long and Weekend Classes

Planetary Science

  • How Do Planets Form?

    New direct observations of planet formation in other Solar Systems are raising questions about how our family of planets may have formed: do gas giant planets form a solid core of ice & rock first, or do they form from the fragmentation of a nebula? Or both?

  • Why are Venus and Earth so Different?

    Venus and Earth are almost the same size, but are very different. Venus has an atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide, no moon, and surface temperatures hot enough to melt lead. Why?

  • Is there Intelligent Life on Other Worlds?

    How might we detect the presence of other civilizations outside of our Solar System? Are we likely to contact them in our lifetime? If we did, how would we talk to them?

  • Are there Habitable Exoplanets?

    Are there planetary systems where there might be planets that can harbor life? What if multiple civilizations started on adjacent planets? How might we find such systems? Could we go there?

  • Could Humanity Move to Another Planet?

    Could we live on another planet in our Solar System? Or maybe a moon in the outer Solar System? What would it take to get there? What would it take to survive there, long-term?

  • What will Earth Look Like in 10,000 Years?

    What is the long-term fate of Earth as the population rises and resources become scarce? What plans, technologies, and strategies can we put in place to preserve our home planet?

Cosmology

  • What is Dark Matter?

    Observations of galaxies and star clusters show that much of the Universe is made of some material that we can't see with a telescope. What is "dark matter?"

  • What is General Relativity?

    Why does gravity behave so differently from the other fundamental forces of Nature? How are space and time related? What did Einstein get right? And what did he get wrong?

  • How Old is the Universe?

    How do we measure the age of the Universe? How are new observations from the James Webb Space Telescope changing our ideas about the early evolution of the Universe?

  • How do Galaxies Form?

    How did matter begin to clump up in the early Universe to create galaxies, stars, and planets? What role did dark matter play in this process?

  • Can we "See" The Big Bang?

    How did pesky "background noise" in radio observations of the skies turn out to be a signature of the birth of atoms after the Big Bang?

  • What is a Black Hole?

    What is a black hole? What does a black hole look like? What happens if two of them collide? Do they last forever?
Planetary Science Track
Multiple Sessions Online Week-Long Sessions Monday-Thursday
The Planetary Science Track will be a "deep dive" into planets in our Solar System and extrasolar planets with an eye toward planetary climate.
  • Planet formation around our Sun and other stars
  • What controls whether a planet has volcanoes, plate tectonics, or is geologically "dead?"
  • Mars, Venus, Mercury, Earth: why are they so different?
  • The TRAPPIST-1 family of exoplanets
  • Planetary climates and their evolution
  • The search for life beyond Earth
  • Exploration of other planets: rovers, samples, spectroscopy
Enrollment is limited to 10 students per session Applicants are evaluated on a rolling basis Tuition: $1230
Apply Now
Cosmology Track
Multiple Sessions Online Week-Long Sessions Monday-Thursday
The Cosmology Track will follow the evolution of the Universe from the Big Bang through the formation of atoms and molecules, to stars, and galaxies.
  • What does the Cosmic Microwave Background tell us about the early Universe?
  • What is dark matter, and how do we know it exists?
  • What does a black hole look like?
  • What is General Relativity and what does it tell us about the Universe?
  • What is a supernova?
  • What are neutron stars, quasars, and pulsars?
  • What is a wormhole?
  • Are there other Universes?
Enrollment is limited to 10 students per session Applicants are evaluated on a rolling basis Tuition: $1490
Apply Now

Course Format

Students will complete weekly problem sets and complete a mentoring portfolio including a college list, draft college essays, and draft messages to potential mentors and recommenders. Homework help and mentoring is available by arrangement with instructor and will be assessed based on student growth and effort rather than "right" or "wrong." Students who attend all of the sessions and complete the written assignments will receive a letter of completion and may request letters of recommendation from the instructor for school, college, or scholarship applications.
How We Teach and Grade
How We Mentor

Instructor

The instructor for the 2025 summer course is YTL founder Dr. Amy Barr Mlinar. Amy holds a BS in planetary science from Caltech and a PhD in astrophysics from the University of Colorado Boulder. She is an expert in the formation and evolution of rocky and icy planets in our Solar System and beyond, having authored 40+ peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, and appearing on NPR, Nova, and the BBC to discuss her research. From 2011 to 2014 Amy was a professor at Brown University, where she developed courses on planetary physics and exoplanets, similar to that being offered this summer. Amy is also an expert on university admissions, having contributed to admissions recruiting and selection at Caltech, SSP, and other organizations.