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We quantify the effects of refraction in transit transmission spectroscopy on spectral absorption features and on temporal variations that could be used to obtain altitude-dependent spectra for planets orbiting stars of different stellar…
[Abridged] The transmission of light through a planetary atmosphere can be studied as a function of altitude and wavelength using stellar or solar occultations, giving often unique constraints on the atmospheric composition. For exoplanets,…
The recent transit observation of HD 209458 b - an extrasolar planet orbiting a sun-like star - confirmed that it is a gas giant and determined that its orbital inclination is 85 degrees. This inclination makes possible investigations of…
In recent years, a number of observations have been made of the transits of 'Hot Jupiters', such as HD 189733b, which have been modelled to derive atmospheric structure and composition. As measurement techniques improve, the transit spectra…
We present high resolution transmission spectra, calculated directly from a 3D radiative-hydrodynamics simulation that includes kinetic cloud formation, for HD209458b. We find that the high opacity of our vertically extensive cloud deck,…
Planets larger than Earth and smaller than Neptune are some of the most numerous in the galaxy, but observational efforts to understand this population have proved challenging because optically thick clouds or hazes at high altitudes…
The Moon's changeable aspect during a lunar eclipse is largely attributable to variations in the refracted unscattered sunlight absorbed by the terrestrial atmosphere that occur as the satellite crosses the Earth's shadow. The contribution…
Transmission spectroscopy to date has detected atomic and molecular absorption in Jupiter-sized exoplanets, but intense efforts to measure molecular absorption in the atmospheres of smaller (Neptune-sized) planets during transits have…
Broad-band exoplanet transit photometry can characterize the planetary atmosphere when observed at multiple selected filters. This observing technique can reveal gradients in the spectra of extrasolar planets, for example the slope of…
Capitalizing on the observational advantage offered by its tiny M dwarf host, we present HST/WFC3 grism measurements of the transmission spectrum of the super-Earth exoplanet GJ1214b. These are the first published WFC3 observations of a…
Transmission spectroscopy is an effective technique for probing exoplanetary atmospheres. While most observations have relied on space facilities such as HST and JWST, ground-based high-resolution transmission spectroscopy (HRTS) has also…
Ground based observers have on 5/6th June 2012 the last opportunity of the century to watch the passage of Venus across the solar disk from Earth. Venus transits have traditionally provided unique insight into the Venus atmosphere through…
Model simulations of solar irradiance reaching the Earth's surface during a solar eclipse constitute a useful tool for studying the impact of this phenomenon on the radiance propagation through the atmosphere. A simple approach to extend…
Atmospheric temperature and mixing ratio profiles of terrestrial planets vary with the spectral energy flux distribution for different types of M-dwarf stars and the planetary gravity. We investigate the resulting effects on the spectral…
We present high resolution transmission spectra of giant planet atmospheres from a coupled 3-D atmospheric dynamics and transmission spectrum model that includes Doppler shifts which arise from winds and planetary motion. We model jovian…
We report observations of the transiting extrasolar planet, HD 209458 b, designed to detect the secondary eclipse. We employ the method of `occultation spectroscopy', which searches in combined light (star and planet) for the disappearance…
Atmospheric regions below a refractive boundary are hidden in limb observations. Refraction thus creates a gray continuum in the planet's transmission spectrum which can hide spectral features associated with sources of atmospheric opacity.…
Transmission spectroscopy is a key technique in the characterization of exoplanet atmospheres and has been widely applied to planets undergoing hydrodynamic escape. While a robust analytic theory exists for transmission spectra of…
We study the influence of low-level water and high-level ice clouds on low-resolution reflection spectra and planetary albedos of Earth-like planets orbiting different types of stars in both the visible and near infrared wavelength range.…
The passive retroreflector arrays placed on the moon by Apollo 11, 14 and 15 astronauts continue to produce valuable Earth-Moon range measurements that enable high-precision tests of gravitational physics, as well as studies of geo- and…