Related papers: Oxidation of the Interiors of Carbide Exoplanets
We investigate the effect of pressure, temperature and acidity on the composition of water-rich carbon-bearing fluids at thermodynamic conditions that correspond to the Earth's deep Crust and Upper Mantle. Our first-principles molecular…
We use new interior models of cold planets to investigate the mass-radius relationships of solid exoplanets, considering planets made primarily of iron, silicates, water, and carbon compounds. We find that the mass-radius relationships for…
Many planets in the solar system and across the galaxy have hydrogen-rich atmospheres overlying more heavy element-rich interiors with which they interact for billions of years. Atmosphere-interior interactions are thus crucial to…
Understanding the chemical interactions between water and Mg-silicates or iron is essential to constrain the interiors of water-rich planets. Hydration effects have, however, been mostly neglected by the astrophysics community so far. As…
Hydrocarbon mixtures are extremely abundant in the Universe, and diamond formation from them can play a crucial role in shaping the interior structure and evolution of planets. With first-principles accuracy, we first estimate the diamond…
Many of the confirmed short period super-Earths and smaller sub-Neptunes are sufficiently irradiated for the surface silicates to be sustained in a long-lasting molten state. While there is no direct evidence of magma ocean influence on…
Terrestrial planets in the solar system, such as the Earth, are oxygen-rich, with silicates and iron being the most common minerals in their interiors. However, the true chemical diversity of rocky planets orbiting other stars is yet…
As the number of detected rocky extrasolar planets increases, the question of whether their surfaces could be habitable is becoming more pertinent. On Earth, the long-term carbonate silicate cycle is able to regulate surface temperatures…
In the giant impact theory for lunar origin, the Moon forms from material ejected by the impact into an Earth-orbiting disk. Here we report the initial results from a silicate melt-vapor equilibrium chemistry model for such impact-generated…
Water is abundant in natural environments but the form it resides in planetary interiors remains uncertain. We report combined synchrotron X-ray diffraction and optical spectroscopy measurements of H2O in the laser-heated diamond anvil cell…
The ever-expanding catalog of detected super-Earths calls for theoretical studies of their properties in the case of a substantial water layer. This work considers such water planets with a range of masses and water mass fractions (2 to 5…
Some low-density exoplanets are thought to be water-rich worlds that formed beyond the snow line of their protoplanetary disc, possibly accreting coequal portions of rock and water. However, the compositions of bodies within the Solar…
Many extrasolar (bound) terrestrial planets and free-floating (unbound) planets have been discovered. The existence of bound and unbound terrestrial planets with liquid water is an important question, and of particular importance is the…
Earth's water, intrinsic oxidation state, and metal core density are fundamental chemical features of our planet. Studies of exoplanets provide a useful context for elucidating the source of these chemical traits. Planet formation and…
Lava planets are rocky exoplanets that orbit so close to their host star that their day-side is hot enough to melt silicate rock. Their short orbital periods ensure that lava planets are tidally locked into synchronous rotation, with…
Substantial silicate vapor is expected to be in chemical equilibrium at temperature conditions typical of the silicate-atmosphere interface of sub-Neptune planets, which can exceed 5000 K. Previous models of the atmospheric structure and…
Many parameters constraining the spectral appearance of exoplanets are still poorly understood. We therefore study the properties of irradiated exoplanet atmospheres over a wide parameter range including metallicity, C/O ratio and host…
The reactions of CO$_2$ in water under extreme pressure-temperature conditions are of great importance to the carbon storage and transport below Earth's surface, which substantially affect the carbon budget in the atmosphere. We applied ab…
Super-Earths span a wide range of bulk densities, indicating a diversity in interior conditions beyond that seen in the solar system. In particular, an emerging population of low-density super-Earths may be explained by volatile-rich…
Understanding the planetary envelope composition of sub-Neptune-type exoplanets is challenging due to the inherent degeneracy in their interior composition scenarios. Particularly, the planetary envelope's H2O/H2 ratio, which can also be…