[astro-ph.EP] The classical circumstellar habitable zone restricts the search for life to planetary surfaces where stellar irradiation sustains liquid water, overlooking vast subsurface environments.
rocky exoplanet
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
What The Solar System Can Teach Us About Rocky Exoplanets
[astro-ph.EP] The number of rocky extrasolar planets being discovered continues to increase, but so too does the apparent diversity of such worlds.
Posted inVenus
The Venus Benchmark: Resolving Degeneracies in Terrestrial Exoplanet Spectra with DAVINCI
[astro-ph.EP]. The characterization of terrestrial exoplanets with thick, CO2-dominated atmospheres via transmission and emission spectroscopy is limited by degeneracies between atmospheric composition, cloud structure, and surface conditions.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather
Atmospheric Retrieval of Combined JWST, HST, and Ground-Based Observations Reveals a Featureless Transmission Spectrum for GJ 1132 b
[astro-ph.EP] We present a panchromatic transmission spectrum of GJ1132b spanning 0.71–5.16 μm, combining published transit observations from Magellan/LDSS3C, HST/WFC3 G141, and JWST/NIRSpec (G395H and G395M).
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
An Evolving Cosmic Shoreline and Sandbar Bounding the Rocky Airless Valley
[astro-ph.EP] Recent JWST observations challenge the traditional ‘cosmic shoreline’ from both sides, revealing thick volatile atmospheres on the hottest close-in ‘lava worlds,’ where irradiation should drive the most extreme escape, […]
![Earth biosignatures through time and their reflected light spectra. The left subplot shows estimates of Earth’s bulk atmospheric composition through time (advancing from top to bottom), and the figures on the right show the corresponding reflected light spectra considered in this study. Key absorption features for biosignature gases (O3, O2, CH4) and suggested long- and short-wavelength cutoffs are highlighted (as discussed further in Sections 3 and 4). Adapted from National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2021) and LUVOIR and HabEx Final Reports (LUVOIR Team, 2019; Gaudi et al., 2020). -- [Astrobiology (Journal)]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Wavelength.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology
Wavelength Requirements for Life Detection via Reflected Light Spectroscopy of Rocky Exoplanets
[Astrobiology (Journal)] Searching for signs of life is a primary goal of the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO). However, merely detecting oxygen, methane, or other widely discussed biosignatures is insufficient evidence […]
Posted inPlant Biology
Is A Constitutive Red-shift An Advantage For Oxygenic Photosynthesis Under M Dwarf Starlight? Insights From Acaryochloris Marina sp. str. Moss Beach
[FEMS Microbes] In the next decades, space telescope missions will search for life evidence on exoplanets, focusing on robust biosignatures associated with oxygenic photosynthesis, including atmospheric oxygen accumulation and the […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
Searching For Habitable Exoplanets With Relative Astrometry (SHERA). I. The Case For Searching For Planets In Binary Star Systems
[astro-ph.EP] Discovering Earth-like planets orbiting Sun-like stars was identified as a priority science goal of the Astronomy 2020 Decadal Survey.
![Latitude-longitude maps of column-integrated water clouds (panels a, b and c), outgoing longwave radiation (OLR, panels d, e and f) and albedo at the top of the atmosphere (TOA albedo, panels g, h and i) for Cases 2A, 2B and 2C. The variables are averaged over ∼50 orbits. The dashed white line on the albedo color bar corresponds to the surface albedo.-- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/A-broad.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
A Broad Exploration Of Climate And Observability Of Close-in Rocky Exoplanets: Applications To Ross 128 b
[astro-ph.EP] VLT/RISTRETTO, ELT/ANDES and ELT/PCS will soon enable atmospheric characterization of non-transiting, small rocky exoplanets orbiting closer than the inner edge of the Habitable Zone around M dwarfs, combining high-contrast […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
SCoRE: The Surface Composition Of Rocky Exoplanets
[astro-ph.EP] Context. The crust composition of rocky exoplanets with a substantial atmosphere can not be observed directly. However, recent developments are starting to allow for the observation and characterisation of […]