Related papers: Hydrogen-helium immiscibility boundary in planets
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 liquid water habitable zone (HZ) describes the orbital distance at which a terrestrial planet can maintain above-freezing conditions through regulation by the carbonate-silicate cycle. Recent calculations have suggested that planets in…
From an astrobiological point of view, special attention has been paid to the probability of habitable planets in extrasolar systems. The purpose of this study is to constrain a possible range of the mass of a terrestrial planet that can…
The Galileo probe showed that Jupiter's atmosphere is severely depleted in neon compared to protosolar values. We show, via ab initio simulations of the partitioning of neon between hydrogen and helium phases, that the observed depletion…
The atmospheric pressure-temperature profiles for transiting giant planets cross a range of chemical transitions. Here we show that the particular shape of these irradiated profiles for warm giant planets below 1300 K lead to striking…
We present a semi-analytical free-energy model aimed at characterizing the thermodynamic properties of dense fluid helium, from the low-density atomic phase to the high-density fully ionized regime. The model is based on a free-energy…
We build on recent new evolutionary models of Jupiter and Saturn and here extend our calculations to investigate the evolution of extrasolar giant planets of mass 0.15 to 3.0 M_J. Our inhomogeneous thermal history models show that the…
Radiative transfer equilibrium models of nearby interstellar matter (ISM) yield the boundary conditions of the heliosphere when constrained with observations of ISM inside and outside of the heliosphere. Filtration factors for interstellar…
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is the primary component of the reservoirs of cold, dense gas that fuel star formation in our galaxy. While the H2 abundance is ultimately regulated by physical processes operating on small scales in the interstellar…
Neutral Interstellar Helium (NISHe) is almost unaffected at the heliospheric interface with the interstellar medium and freely enters the solar system. It provides some of the best information on the characteristics of the interstellar gas…
The determination of Saturn's atmospheric noble gas abundances are critical to understanding the formation and evolution of Saturn, and giant planets in general. These measurements can only be performed with an entry probe. A Saturn probe…
The deuterium to hydrogen ratio in water ice in a planetary body carries important information on the history of water processing and delivery in the protostellar nebula. For a giant planet satellite, the D/H ratio is also affected by the…
Warm Neptune- and sub-Neptune-sized exoplanets in orbits smaller than Mercury's are thought to have experienced extensive atmospheric evolution. Here we propose that a potential outcome of this atmospheric evolution is the formation of…
The He3 abundance is not constrained by helioseismic data. Mixing of He3 inside the solar core by processes not included in the solar standard model (SSM) has been recently proposed as possible solution to the solar neutrino problem. We…
Hycean planets are hypothetical exoplanets characterized by $H_2O$ oceans and $H_2$-rich atmospheres. These planets are high-priority targets for biosignature searches, as they combine abundant surface liquid water with easy-to-characterize…
At altitudes of about 1.05 solar radii or more, the corona above quiet solar regions becomes essentially isothermal. This obviates many of the difficulties associated with the inverse problem of determining emission measure distributions,…
Recent studies have suggested the possibility of Hycean worlds, characterised by deep liquid water oceans beneath H$_2$-rich atmospheres. These planets significantly widen the range of planetary properties over which habitable conditions…
Absorption of stellar X-ray and Extreme Ultraviolet radiation in the upper atmosphere of close-in exoplanets can give rise to hydrodynamic outflows, which may lead to the gradual shedding of their primordial, light element envelopes. Excess…
Understanding the set of conditions that allow rocky planets to have liquid water on their surface -- in the form of lakes, seas or oceans -- is a major scientific step to determine the fraction of planets potentially suitable for the…
Searches for helium in the exospheres of exoplanets via the metastable near-infrared triplet have yielded 17 detections and 40 non-detections. We performed a comprehensive re-analysis of published studies to investigate the influence of…