Related papers: Is Proxima Centauri b habitable? -- A study of atm…
The search for habitable exoplanets and life beyond the Solar System is one of the most compelling scientific opportunities of our time. Nevertheless, the high cost of building facilities that can address this topic and the keen public…
We use the Met Office Unified Model to explore the potential of a tidally locked M dwarf planet, nominally Proxima Centauri b irradiated by a quiescent version of its host star, to sustain an atmospheric ozone layer. We assume a slab ocean…
Static structure models, which map mass-radius constraints to bulk planet composition, are frequently used to categorise exoplanets due to their computational efficiency and the high-level insight they offer into planetary properties.…
Small rocky planets, as well as larger planets that suffered extensive volatile loss, tend to be drier and have thinner atmospheres as compared to Earth. Such planets probably outnumber worlds better endowed with volatiles, being the most…
Recent advances in space and ground-based facilities now enable atmospheric characterization of a selected sample of rocky exoplanets. These atmospheres offer key insights into planetary formation and evolution, but their interpretation…
Atmospheric escape is thought to significantly influence the evolution of exoplanets, especially for sub-Jupiter planets on short orbital periods. Theoretical models predict that hydrodynamic escape could erode the atmospheres of such…
The bolometric radiation from a central body is potentially a powerful driver of atmospheric escape from planets or satellites. When heated above their equilibrium temperatures those satellites, due to their low surface gravity, are be…
With improvements in exoplanet detection techniques, the number of multiple planet systems discovered is increasing, while the detection of potentially habitable Earth-mass planets remains complicated and thus requires new search…
(Abridged) In recent years, ground-based high-resolution spectroscopy has become a powerful tool for investigating exoplanet atmospheres. It allows the robust identification of molecular species, and it can be applied to both transiting and…
We have recently hit the milestone of 5,000 exoplanets discovered. In stark contrast with the Solar System, most of the exoplanets we know to date orbit extremely close to their host stars, causing them to lose copious amounts of gas…
Over the past decade, observations of evaporating exoplanets have become increasingly common, driven by the discovery of the near-infrared helium-triplet line as a powerful probe of atmospheric escape. This process significantly influences…
Terrestrial Solar System planets either have high mean molecular weight atmospheres, as with Venus, Mars, and Earth, or no atmosphere at all, as with Mercury. We do not have sufficient observational information to know if this is typical of…
High levels of X-ray and UV activity on young M dwarfs may drive rapid atmospheric escape on temperate, terrestrial planets orbiting within the liquid water habitable zone. However, secondary atmospheres on planets orbiting older, less…
A radiative-convective climate model is used to calculate stratospheric temperatures and water vapor concentrations for ozone-free atmospheres warmer than that of modern Earth. Cold, dry stratospheres are predicted at low surface…
Radial velocity surveys are now able to detect terrestrial planets at habitable distance from M-type stars. Recently, two planets with minimum masses below 10 Earth masses were reported in a triple system around the M-type star Gliese 581.…
Understanding a planet's atmosphere is a necessary condition for understanding not only the planet itself, but also its formation, structure, evolution, and habitability, This puts a premium on obtaining spectra, and developing credible…
To describe the evaporation status of the extrasolar planets, we propose to consider an energy diagram in which the potential energy of the planets is plotted versus the energy received by the upper atmosphere. Here we present a basic…
The atmospheres of hot Jupiters and other strongly-forced exoplanets are susceptible to a thermal instability in the presence of ohmic dissipation, weak magnetic drag and strong winds. The instability occurs in radiatively-dominated…
Confirmation of the first exomoon remains elusive. Although several exomoon candidates exist around single stars, there are currently no candidates around circumbinary planets (CBPs). Most circumbinary planets are thought to form far from…
We investigate the habitability of hypothethical moons orbiting known exoplanets. This study focuses on big, rocky exomoons that are capable of maintaining a significant atmosphere. To determine their habitability, we calculate the incident…