Extrasolar Planets: November 2015

Inspired by the close-proximity pair of planets in the Kepler-36 system, we consider two effects that may have important ramifications for the development of life in similar systems where a pair of planets may reside entirely in the habitable zone of the hosting star.

Rotation in planetary atmospheres plays an important role in regulating atmospheric and oceanic heat flow, cloud formation and precipitation.

A terrestrial planet in an orbit far outside of the standard habitable zone could maintain surface liquid water as a result of H2-H2 collision-induced absorption by a thick H2 atmosphere.

The most Earth-like planet could have been made uninhabitable by vast quantities of radiation, new research led by the University of Warwick research has found.

Earth has a unique surface character among Solar System worlds. Not only does it harbor liquid water, but also large continents.

M-dwarf stars are generally considered favourable for rocky planet detection. However, such planets may be subject to extreme conditions due to possible high stellar activity.

A simple metric can be used to determine whether a planet or exoplanet can clear its orbital zone during a characteristic time scale, such as the lifetime of the host star on the main sequence.

The system of four planets around HR8799 offers a unique opportunity to probe the physics and chemistry at play in the atmospheres of self-luminous young (~30 Myr) planets.

Circumbinary planets whose orbits become unstable may be ejected, accreted, or even captured by one of the stars.

A key component of characterizing multi-planet exosystems is testing the orbital stability based on the observed properties.

We present newly derived stellar parameters and the detailed abundances of 19 elements of seven stars with small planets discovered by NASA's Kepler Mission.