Organic haze plays a key role in many planetary processes ranging from influencing the radiation budget of an atmosphere to serving as a source of prebiotic molecules on the surface. […]
astro-ph.EP]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
The Puzzling Chemical Composition of GJ 436b's Atmosphere
The dissipation of the tidal energy deposited on eccentric planets may induce a heating of the planet that affects its atmospheric thermal structure. Here we study the influence of tidal […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets
Spectra as Windows into Exoplanet Atmospheres
Understanding a planet’s atmosphere is a necessary condition for understanding not only the planet itself, but also its formation, structure, evolution, and habitability. This puts a premium on obtaining spectra, […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets
Using Dimers to Measure Biosignatures and Atmospheric Pressure for Terrestrial Exoplanets
We present a new method to probe atmospheric pressure on Earthlike planets using (O2-O2) dimers in the near-infrared. We also show that dimer features could be the most readily detectable […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
Terrestrial Planet Formation at Home and Abroad
We review the state of the field of terrestrial planet formation with the goal of understanding the formation of the inner Solar System and low-mass exoplanets. We review the dynamics […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Habitable Zones, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Geochemical and planetary dynamical views on the origin of Earth's atmosphere and oceans
Earth’s volatile elements (H, C, and N) are essential to maintaining habitable conditions for metazoans and simpler life forms. However, identifying the sources (comets, meteorites, and trapped nebular gas) that […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones
Remote Life Detection Criteria, Habitable Zone Boundaries, and the Frequency of Earthlike Planets around M and Late-K Stars
The habitable zone (HZ) around a star is typically defined as the region where a rocky planet can maintain liquid water on its surface. That definition is appropriate, because this […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Origin & Evolution of Life
Influence of Galactic Cosmic Rays on Ion-Neutral Hydrocarbon Chemistry in Upper Atmospheres of Free-Floating Exoplanets
Cosmic rays may be linked to the formation of volatiles necessary for prebiotic chemistry. We explore the effect of cosmic rays in a hydrogen-dominated atmosphere, as a proof-of-concept that ion-neutral […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones
Feasibility Studies for the Detection of O2 in an Earth-like Exoplanet
We present the results of simulations on the detectability of O2 in the atmosphere of Earth twins around nearby low mass stars using high resolution transmission spectroscopy. We explore such […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets
A Search for Methane in the Atmosphere of GJ 1214b via GTC Narrow-Band Transmission Spectrophotometry
We present narrow-band photometric measurements of the exoplanet GJ 1214b using the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) and the OSIRIS instrument. Using tuneable filters we observed a total of […]