Related papers: Plasma physics and planetary astrophysics
The atmospheres of exoplanets reveal all their properties beyond mass, radius, and orbit. Based on bulk densities, we know that exoplanets larger than 1.5 Earth radii must have gaseous envelopes, hence atmospheres. We discuss contemporary…
We examine the uncertainties in current planetary models and we quantify their impact on the planet cooling histories and mass-radius relationships. These uncertainties include (i) the differences between the various equations of state used…
The field of exoplanet atmospheric characterization has recently made considerable advances with the advent of high-resolution spectroscopy from large ground-based telescopes and the commissioning of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).…
Exoplanets with substantial Hydrogen/Helium atmospheres have been discovered in abundance, many residing extremely close to their parent stars. The extreme irradiation levels these atmospheres experience causes them to undergo hydrodynamic…
For most planets in the range of radii from 1 to 4 R$_{\oplus}$, water is a major component of the interior composition. At high pressure H${}_{2}$O can be solid, but for larger planets, like Neptune, the temperature can be too high for…
In principle, the combined measurements of the mass and radius a giant exoplanet allow one to determine the relative fraction of hydrogen and helium and of heavy elements in the planet. However, uncertainties on the underlying physics imply…
The fragile light elements lithium, beryllium, and boron are easily destroyed in stellar interiors, and are thus superb probes of physical processes occuring in the outer stellar layers. The light elements are also excellent tracers of the…
Atmospheric compositions for rocky exoplanets will depend strongly on the bulk planetary composition and the orbital position of the planet. Non-traditional gases may be present in the atmospheres of exceptionally hot planets. Atmospheres…
Anomalous features for hypothetical Plasma Phase Transitions (PPT), which is expected to occur in mixed hydrogen-helium plasma in interior of Jupiter and Saturn, are under discussion. The characteristics of the Coulomb and density…
We know that giant planets played a crucial role in the making of our Solar System. The discovery of giant planets orbiting other stars is a formidable opportunity to learn more about these objects, what is their composition, how various…
The study of exoplanetary atmospheres is one of the most exciting and dynamic frontiers in astronomy. Over the past two decades ongoing surveys have revealed an astonishing diversity in the planetary masses, radii, temperatures, orbital…
The equation of state of hydrogen, helium, and water effects interior structure models of giant planets significantly. We present a new equation of state data table, LM-REOS, generated by large scale quantum molecular dynamics simulations…
Electron temperatures, densities, ionic and elemental abundances of helium, nitrogen, oxygen, argon, sulfur and neon were derived for a sample of bulge planetary nebulae, representative of its intermediate mass population. Using these…
We briefly examine the properties of dense plasmas characteristic of the atmospheres of neutron stars and of the interior of massive white dwarfs. These astrophysical bodies are natural laboratories to study respectively the problem of…
We investigate a population of transiting planets that receive relatively modest stellar insolation, indicating equilibrium temperatures $< 1000$ K, and for which the heating mechanism that inflates hot Jupiters does not appear to be…
It is well known that stars orbited by giant planets have higher abundances of heavy elements when compared with average field dwarfs. A number of studies have also addressed the possibility that light element abundances are different in…
The physical bases of the detection and characterisation of extrasolar planets in the reflected light and thermal emission regimes are reviewed. They both have their advantages and disadvantages, including artefacts, in the determination of…
New interior models of Jupiter and Saturn suggest that both planets have "fuzzy cores". These cores should be viewed as central regions that are enriched with heavy elements but are not distinct from the rest of the deep interior. These…
The coupled interior-atmosphere system of terrestrial exoplanets remains poorly understood. Exoplanets show a wide variety of sizes, densities, surface temperatures, and interior structures, with important knock-on effects for this coupled…
This review article delves into the study of low-mass exoplanets: super-Earths, mini-Neptunes and the new categories within and between that we are starting to discover. We provide an overview of current exoplanet observational…