TRAPPIST-1 Archives

Stellar flares observed in JWST/NIRISS time-series spectroscopy of TRAPPIST-1. Each column shows one flare event during transits of the TRAPPIST-1c or TRAPPIST-1f planets. Tow row: Light curves with the total flux (integrated over the full spectral range and normalized to the mean out-of-transit flux). Colored points indicate pre-flare (green), flare (orange), maximum flare light (red), and post-flare (blue) phases. Green and blue dashed lines mark the average pre- and post-flare flux levels. Middle row: Light curves of the normalized Hα flux. Bottom row: Time-resolved spectrograms (wavelength vs. time) normalized to the pre-flare spectrum. The shaded blue region shows the drop in flux caused by the planetary transit. For comparison, the time axis in all panels are aligned such that t = 0 corresponds to the beginning of the maximum flare light phase. In all four events, the total flux in the post-flare phase is systematically elevated relative to the pre-flare level. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Magnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,, Press Release, Radiation, Space Weather & Heliophysics, TRAPPIST-1

Flares On TRAPPIST-1 Reveal The Spectrum Of Magnetic Features On Its Surface

by Keith CowingAugust 8, 2025August 8, 2025

TRAPPIST-1 is an M8 dwarf hosting seven known exoplanets and is currently one of the most frequently observed targets of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

Atmospheric speciation of TRAPPIST-1e at 280 K above a planetary surface with stable condensates for atmospheres originally in equilibrium with a fully molten mantle. In all panels, the curve colours correspond to the gas species listed in the legend and condensate masses are relative to Earth oceans (EO). Upper panels show the percentage of models by dominant species (VMR > 50%) that satisfy the requirement of a minimum mass of (a) Water, (b) Graphite, (c) α-sulfur, and (d) Ammonium chloride. Lower panels illustrate the composition and total pressure of the atmosphere for (e) CO2-rich above a water ocean, (f) CH4-rich above graphite, (g) CO2-rich above α-sulfur, and (h) CH4-rich above ammonium chloride. Median values are indicated by lines and shaded regions bracket the first and third quartiles. Compare to the atmospheric speciation derived from a partially molten mantle in Figure A5. -- astro-ph.EP

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gas Giants, Habitable Zones, Ice Giant, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1

Diversity of Rocky Planet Atmospheres In The C-H-O-N-S-Cl System With Interior Dissolution, Non-ideality, and Condensation: Application to TRAPPIST-1e and Sub-Neptunes

by Keith CowingJuly 6, 2025July 6, 2025

A quantitative understanding of the nature and composition of low-mass rocky exo(planet) atmospheres during their evolution is needed to interpret observations.

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Characterizing Exoplanets For Assessing Their Potential Habitability

by Keith CowingJune 27, 2025June 27, 2025

The Statistical-likelihood Exoplanetary Habitability Index (SEPHI) serves as a valuable tool for prioritizing targets for further study and identifying potentially habitable environments.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Habitable Zones, Space Weather & Heliophysics, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1

Hubble’s Multi-Year Search for Exospheres in the TRAPPIST-1 System Reveals Frequent Microflares

by Keith CowingJune 17, 2025June 17, 2025

Ly-α observations provide a powerful probe of stellar activity and atmospheric escape in exoplanetary systems.

TRAPPIST-1 System contains multiple rocky planets in very tight orbits. In contrast, our solar system is much more expansive and has no planets inside the orbit of Mercury. -- NASA

Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Stellar Cartography, TRAPPIST-1

New SwRI Model Explains Exoplanetary Systems With Compact Orbits

by Keith CowingJune 9, 2025June 9, 2025

Star and planet formation has largely been considered separate, sequential processes. But in a new study, scientists at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) have modeled a different scenario where planets start […]

This schematic depicts the set-up of the volatile exchange during initialization (t=0) and run time. For initialization, a surface temperature of 4000 K and a completely molten magma ocean is assumed, where the dissolved volatiles are in balance with the outgassed volatile content, set by the volatile melt fraction Fi . As the magma ocean solidifies, part of the volatile budget is deposited in the solid mantle. Further, atmospheric escape can remove H2O. These two sink terms thus reduce the amount of a volatile available in the fully coupled magma ocean-atmosphere system Mmoa i . The full overview of all included processes, including radiogenic heating, is shown in Barth et al. (2021, Fig. 1) -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Press Release, TRAPPIST-1

From CO2- to H2O-dominated Atmospheres And Back — How Mixed Outgassing Changes The Volatile Distribution In Magma Oceans Around M Dwarf Stars [TRAPPIST-1]

by Keith CowingMay 24, 2025May 24, 2025

We investigate the impact of CO2 on TRAPPIST-1 e, f and g during the magma ocean stage. These potentially habitable rocky planets are currently the most accessible for astronomical observations.

Schematic diagram of steps in the theoretical model. Further description of key parameters, sampled ranges, and calculation procedures is found in Methods. -- astro-ph.EP)

Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1

Statistical Geochemical Constraints On present-day Water Outgassing As A Source Of Secondary Atmospheres On The TRAPPIST-1 Exoplanets

by Keith CowingMay 8, 2025September 18, 2025

The TRAPPIST-1 planetary system is observationally favorable for studying if planets orbiting M stars can retain atmospheres and host habitable conditions. Recent JWST secondary eclipse observations of TRAPPIST-1 c rule […]

Temporal medians of ’Extreme’, ’Moderate’, and ’Quiescent’ simulations for Temperature (T in K). Medians are taken from 8 years and for (a) 1.223 × 10−5 mbar and (b) 0.008 mbar atmospheric levels. Extreme and Moderate medians are only taken for days when flares occur. Stippling uses a two-tailed Wilcoxon rank-sum test to represent ’Extreme’ and ’Moderate’ areas that are not statistically different from the ’Quiescent’ one at p

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Space Weather & Heliophysics, Status Report, Stellar Cartography, TRAPPIST-1, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Effects of Transient Stellar Emissions On Planetary Climates Of Tidally-locked Exo-earths

by Keith CowingMay 7, 2025May 7, 2025

Space weather events in planetary environments sourced from transient host star emissions, including stellar flares, coronal mass ejections, and stellar proton events, can substantially influence an exoplanet’s climate and atmospheric […]

Sketch of the magnetospheric interaction in the TRAPPIST-1–TRAPPIST-1e system. The stellar wind velocity and IMF streamlines are drawn in green and white, respectively. The M dwarf star is shown as a yellow sphere, and the planet TRAPPIST-1e as a blue shaded circle. The planetary magnetic field lines (white) exhibit compression on the dayside and extension into a magnetotail. A bow shock structure forms upstream of the planet under a super-Alfvénic regime. The color scale represents normalized plasma density. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Space Weather & Heliophysics, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1

MHD Simulations Preliminarily Predict The Habitability and Radio Emission of TRAPPIST-1e

by Keith CowingApril 24, 2025April 24, 2025

As the closest Earth-like exoplanet within the habitable zone of the M-dwarf star TRAPPIST-1, TRAPPIST-1e exhibits a magnetic field topology that is dependent on space weather conditions.

Left, difference in wmf between two different hydrosphere assumptions and the default model. Red dotted is models with the surface temperature raised to create a layer of liquid water instead of ice Ih. Blue dashed is models with the AQUA compilation of EoSs from Haldemann et al. (2020). The hatched region shows the 1-σ region of wmf from observational uncertainties with our default model. Right, difference in wmf between planet models with different bulk moduli for the mantle or core and our default planet model. In red, the bulk modulus of the core is increased (dotted) and decreased (dashed) by 10%. In blue, the bulk modulus of the bridgmanite and post perovskite is increased/decreased by 10%. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1

Uncertainties In The Inference of Internal Structure: The Case of TRAPPIST-1 f

by Keith CowingApril 24, 2025April 24, 2025

We use the TRAPPIST-1 system as a model observation of Earth-like planets. The densities of these planets being 1-10% less than the Earth suggest that the outer planets may host […]

TRAPPIST-1

Flares On TRAPPIST-1 Reveal The Spectrum Of Magnetic Features On Its Surface

Diversity of Rocky Planet Atmospheres In The C-H-O-N-S-Cl System With Interior Dissolution, Non-ideality, and Condensation: Application to TRAPPIST-1e and Sub-Neptunes

Characterizing Exoplanets For Assessing Their Potential Habitability

Hubble’s Multi-Year Search for Exospheres in the TRAPPIST-1 System Reveals Frequent Microflares

New SwRI Model Explains Exoplanetary Systems With Compact Orbits

From CO2- to H2O-dominated Atmospheres And Back — How Mixed Outgassing Changes The Volatile Distribution In Magma Oceans Around M Dwarf Stars [TRAPPIST-1]

Statistical Geochemical Constraints On present-day Water Outgassing As A Source Of Secondary Atmospheres On The TRAPPIST-1 Exoplanets

Effects of Transient Stellar Emissions On Planetary Climates Of Tidally-locked Exo-earths

MHD Simulations Preliminarily Predict The Habitability and Radio Emission of TRAPPIST-1e

Uncertainties In The Inference of Internal Structure: The Case of TRAPPIST-1 f

Tricorder Tech: Ground Truth For The DAVINCI Venus Mission

Mars Curiosity Rover Finds Evidence Of An Ancient Sandstorm

Pristine Meteorite Examination Adds To Our Knowledge Of Ancient Asteroids

NASA Study Finds Near-Earth Asteroid Is Actually Comet

NASA Awards STRIDE Contracts For Mars Advanced Surface Mobility Technology