dr. seager's research has introduced new ideas for the study of exoplanets. in fact, she was part of the team to detect the first emission of light from an exoplanet. additionally, she has committed swathes of research on all kinds interiors of and all kinds of exoplanets. she received her phd in astronomy from harvard university. i would note, with all of these phd's, i think the senators here are all badly undereducated. with that, we will have our first witness, dr. zuburchen. dr. zuburchen: thank you so much. chairman cruz, ranking members , and members of the subcommittee, the work of nasa scientists at the forefront of scientific discovery and innovation. the questions we seek to answer affect humanity on a global scale and focus on our place in the universe. where did we come from? are we alone? questions that are well aligned with the topic of this hearing. later this month, nasa will launch our next daring mission, which will touch the sun by flying deep through its atmosphere. the first spacecraft designed to do so, and will revolutionize our unders