---
address: |
    Department of Astronomy, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721\
    e-mail: aburrows@as.arizona.edu
author:
- Adam Burrows
title: A theoretical look at the direct detection of giant planets outside the Solar System
---

å[[*Astron. Astrophys.*]{} ]{} \#1[$\underline{\smash{\hbox{#1}}}$]{}

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Astronomy is at times a science of unexpected discovery. When it is, and if we are lucky, new intellectual territories emerge to challenge our views of the cosmos. The recent indirect detections using high-precision Doppler spectroscopy of now more than one hundred giant planets orbiting more than one hundred nearby stars is an example of such rare serendipity. What has been learned has shaken our preconceptions, for none of the planetary systems discovered to date is like our own. However, the key to unlocking a planet’s chemical, structural, and evolutionary secrets is the direct detection of the planet’s light. I review the embryonic theory of the spectra, atmospheres, and light curves of irradiated giant planets and put this theory into the context of the many proposed astronomical campaigns to image them.

Introduction: The Newly-Discovered Worlds {#sumegp}
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Direct detection of an extrasolar planet requires that its dim light be separated from under the glare of its bright 